Shock: Woman declared dead is found breathless in funeral home

A funeral home employee received the surprise of his life this week when a woman thought to be dead was found clearly alive.

Constance Glantz, a 74-year-old woman from Lincoln, Nebraska, was pronounced dead around 9:45 a.m. local time Monday by staff at The Mulberry nursing home in Waverly, where she had been receiving hospice care.

Lancaster County Sheriff’s Deputy Ben Houchin said at a news conference Monday that Glantz’s body was subsequently transported to the Butherus-Maser & Love Funeral Home to prepare for burial.

But suddenly, two hours after her apparent death, an employee of the funeral home noticed that the 74-year-old was still breathing.

Deputy Police Chief Houchin said a 911 call came in around 11:43 a.m. to report a “medical emergency” at the funeral home.

Shortly thereafter, Lincoln Fire Department rescue crews arrived on scene and found personnel performing CPR on Glantz.

She was taken to the hospital where she is still alive.

“This is a very unusual case,” said Deputy Police Chief Houchin.

“I’ve been doing this for 31 years and I’ve never gotten this far.”

Glantz’s family has been informed of the incident.

The Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office has now launched an investigation into the incident to find out what went wrong.

The deputy director said there was no evidence of criminal intent on the part of the nursing home.