'Dead' woman comes 'back to life' moments before her own cremation

An Indian woman who was thought to be dead suddenly woke up just before her cremation was due to take place.

Bujji Aamma, 52, had been involved in a house fire on February 1 and sustained 'severe injuries' as half of her body was covered with burns.

Aamma, from Berhampur, India, was taken to MKCG Medical College and Hospital to receive treatment, but she seemed to 'get even worse' once she was discharged and allowed home with her family.

The family struggled to pay for Aamma to receive further treatment, and she's believed to have been 'found dead' a couple of days later at home.

After her perceived 'death', her husband Sibaram Palo arranged for her to be taken to the crematorium in a hearse.

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"We thought she was dead and informed others in the locality to arrange a hearse van to carry the body to the cremation ground," he told the Times of India.

Siba Pradhan, husband of local corporator, said: "We arranged the hearse from Berhampur Munical Corporation, with help of locals, her family took her to a nearby cremation ground in Bijipur."

However in a one-in-a-million twist, a local who accompanied Aamma in the hearse noticed she had opened her eyes.

He said: "Initially we were scared as we had never seen such an incident, though we had heard some stories."

The driver who originally picked up the 'body', was called back just half an hour later to take her back home, and she was taken back in the same hearse she arrived in.

According to the crematorium, locals do not need to provide a death certificate to perform the last rites of a family member.

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Aamma isn't the only person to have waken up after everyone was convinced she'd died.

Last year, a 90-year-old Brazilian woman was declared dead on November 25, but found to be breathing in a body bag hours later.

Norma Silveira da Silva was rushed back to hospital for treatment, but tragically died shortly afterwards.

Caregiver Jessica Martins Silvi Pereira, 30 said: "When [a crematorium worker] opened the bag she was breathing very weakly.

"And, as she was no longer conscious, she couldn't ask for help, she tried to breathe and couldn't."

It's unknown if the time Norma spent in the body bag was a factor in her death.

She was cremated on November 27 and an investigation was launched into how this could have happened.