Quebec television network TVA reports that 170 headstones in an old cemetery in Islet-sur-Mer in the province’s Chaudière-Appalaches region have been removed from the burial sites and grouped together along the side of the cemetery. Some of the earliest burials date to the 1700s. Islet-sur-Mer is on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River, northwest of Montmagny.
Apart from desecrating these old burial sites, there are other problems.
Apparently, there is a shortage of space in the cemetery and the money people paid for the plots only holds the burial site for 25 years. The cemetery has tried to find the descendants, which has been hard to do since many have left this town.
The story gets better.
Since 2008, the manager has delivered an ultimatum to the families of the deceased by placing what sounds like a sticky note on the headstones. Some headstones that are not even 20 years old are at risk of being removed in a few years.
If no one from the deceased’s family contacts the cemetery — and offers to pay — the burial plot will be re-sold and somone else will be buried on top of the previously buried remains. The Quebec cemetery association, Association des cimetières du Québec, says this is a common practice. The association’s president, Monique Mortin, says that the sale of old plots is happening across the province in cemeteries that no longer have space.
You can read more about this story, in French, and see photos on TVA’s website.
They should be friggin cremated leave the graves along how gross is that !!!