Paramedics ticked off for TikTok coffin dance video

A TikTok video made by paramedics appearing to copy a ‘coffin dance’ craze has been criticised for being in bad taste.

The North West Ambulance Service issued a statement saying the video was ‘inappropriate’ and although workers did not mean to cause offence, it breached their social media policy.

The 30-second video, which was posted on the social media app on Tuesday, shows a paramedic telling a man: ‘Just have a seat there pal while I put this mask on’. The man then coughs in the back of an ambulance, startling workers who are reaching for personal protective equipment.

Dance music kicks in and four paramedics are seen wearing sunglasses, standing side by side with their arms folded outside the ambulance. They then reappear holding a CPR dummy on a stretcher before dancing with it.

In another scene of the video – which has now been removed from the platform – they high five over the doll before bouncing it up and down on their shoulders.

It appears the workers are copying a ‘coffin dance’ video that has become popular on TikTok over the last few weeks, with groups of people dancing around coffins.

The video was captioned: ‘Caution. Morale boost imminent #COVID19 #coffindance #nhs.’ It had been watched almost 40,000 times.

For all the latest news and updates on Coronavirus, click here.

Many who watched the video were shocked by the references it made to the coronavirus pandemic and while they support the NHS’ work, the video was not deemed ‘morale-boosting’.

One man wrote on Twitter: ‘@NWAmbulance huge supporter of yourselves & the #NHS.

‘I think you are all absolute legends.

‘But to stumble across this video, mocking people with #COVID19, calling it the coffin dance & stating this is “morale”.

‘Personally I don’t see families being ripped apart as morale.’

It comes after NHS nurses were accused of ‘cultural appropriation’ after they uploaded a video performing the Māori haka also in a bid to boost morale.

Staff from the Tavistock Day Case Theatre, in west Devon, apologised for the video and said upsetting anyone was the ‘last thing’ they wanted to do.

The North West Ambulance Service spoke out over the video and stated that the staff involved meant no offence by the video.

A spokesperson for NWAS told the Liverpool Echo: ‘Whilst using social media, employees are expected to act professionally at all times and adhere to the same standards of behaviour they would be expected to observe whilst in work.

‘Although we understand the staff involved did not mean to cause offence, this video is inappropriate and a clear breach of our social media policy. It has now been removed.’

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.

For more stories like this, check our news page.