A Scots council has spent £3.4million exhuming bodies from hundreds of flooded graves across two main cemeteries. South Ayrshire Council have confirmed the whopping costs they incurred whilst dealing with a major crisis at burial grounds in Ayr and Troon.
The site in Ayr, the local authority’s largest cemetery, was hit by a scandal in 2022 when drainage issues sparked a probe that revealed a grim 126 plots were waterlogged. Flooding was then identified at Troon Cemetery later that year, with 87 graves found to be affected, including 51 occupied.
Council chiefs turned to expert graves exhumer Peter Mitchell to rectify the issue. Heartbroken families were told deceased loved ones would have to be removed before being re-buried.
According to BBC Scotland, the local authority has confirmed the painstaking remedial work has been completed, with the bulk of the £3.4million spent on repairing plots and supporting traumatised families at Ayr Cemetery. The final cost for Troon Cemetery was just under £750,000.
In a statement, South Ayrshire Council said: “At the outset, we made a commitment to the affected families that we would do everything possible to resolve any issues with the burial chambers at Ayr and Troon cemeteries.
“We also said to families that we would support them in any way that we could. By working with a number of specialists we have now concluded the works at Ayr and Troon cemeteries. We are still in contact with a number of families, and this will continue.”
Families previously told our sister title Ayrshire Live how they had been put through “hell” as they opened up on the “torture” they suffered having to rebury loved ones. The graves hit by the water scandal were all in a newest “extension” part of the cemetery.
Families slammed council chiefs for ‘copy and paste’ letters which informed them they would have to exhume their loved one from what was supposed to be their final resting place.
Officials were also criticised for holding meetings with distraught relatives at a nearby crematorium – whilst funerals took place.
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