MY DEAR DAD’S GRAVE WAS LEFT A MUDDY MESS
A WOMAN is furious after her father’s grave was left in a “disgusting” state.
Deborah Richards’ father John passed away last month, leaving behind Linda, his wife of 55 years.
But Ms Richards said the authorities have “done nothing” to maintain the grave at Aberdare Cemetery, and she thinks the grave itself may now be flooded with water.
But Rhondda Cynon Taf council, which runs the cemetery, has said officials are working with Ms Richards to inform and reassure her, and take any action necessary to address concerns she has raised.
Ms Richards, 47, said: “We are totally devastated at the loss of my father and we don’t want to go up there and pay our respects and see that.
“It’s disgusting. What makes it worse is that the grave in front of my father is a fresh one and there was a funeral on Monday morning when officials must have seen how bad my father’s grave was, but have done absolutely nothing. Whoever attended that funeral would have seen that as well.”
John passed away on March 4, aged 71, from heart failure.
Two days after his funeral on March 14, Ms Richards went to visit the grave to make sure the flowers were put out properly.
She said: “The cross was laid flat on a mound of earth so we propped that up best we could with as many stones as we could get our hands on, and there were holes in the soil – when you looked you could see quite a way down. When I moved a bunch of flowers the end of my father’s grave was visible – you could see 6ft under.”
A concerned Ms Richards phoned RCT council to ask for the pitch, which she had paid “hundreds of pounds” for, to be sorted and the holes filled, and was told they were waiting for a delivery of soil.
She hasn’t been able to visit it much recently due to bad weather, but last Monday she went to the site to be confronted by waterlogged ground and the grave sunk.
She said: “Not only was my father’s grave all uneven and sunk on the one side due to the weather, which is fair enough, but the holes I complained about two days after the funeral were not filled in and they were now flooded.”
She said she had asked people at the cemetery if somebody could look after the grave, but was told they were “short staffed”.
A spokeswoman for Rhondda Cynon Taf said: “This complaint has been made directly to the council and we are now working with Ms Richards to inform and reassure her and take any action necessary to address concerns she has raised.
“As a general approach, it does take some time for a grave to settle, particularly in adverse weather conditions, which is why we do not recommend installing a cross or other memorial for at least 12 months, as they can become unstable very quickly.
“For the benefit of all those who use the cemetery, we wish to reassure them that we have the staff on hand to ensure plots are maintained in accordance with the commitment we make to loved ones when they purchase a grave.”