A TEMPORARY mortuary being set up in an old Oxfordshire air base will have the space to store 1,480 dead bodies.

The storage facility has been created at Heyford Park site of RAF and USAF Upper Heyford but will only be used 'if required'.

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Oxfordshire County Council is working with the NHS and the coroner's office, and in a statement explained: "In common with all other areas of the country there are longstanding contingency plans to provide extra mortuary space during emergency situations."

The council insisted that those running the new facility would have a 'very strong commitment to the dignity and respect required in dealing with the deceased and bereaved families, including all faiths'.