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July 1, 2020Iowa City, Iowa |  By: AP

Grim gift adds 500 body bags to Iowa's coronavirus stockpile

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) - Iowa's executive branch is getting a grim gift from a company that has long made uniforms for meatpacking workers: a free supply of 500 body bags.

Dickson Industries is donating the body bags as the state prepares for a worst-case scenario in which the coronavirus or another health emergency would overwhelm hospitals and medical examiners.

The Des Moines-based company makes garments and products for the food processing, medical and other industries, including coats and insulated jackets for meatpacking workers.

A state spokesman says the body bags will be kept in a state stockpile, just like 500 ventilators the state is purchasing.