City of Cape Town struggling to keep up with demand for cremations By Robin-Lee Francke Share Cape Town - The Maitland Crematorium has reported a high demand for cremations due to Covid-19 deaths, the City of Cape Town said on Tuesday. Mayco member for community services and health Zahid Badroodien said the crematorium was operating at full capacity, but due to the high volumes there may be a delay in having ashes available for collection. Badroodien said the demand for cremations had increased by three times more than before the pandemic. Although burials remained high, there was a downward trend, with 500 in the past week.