City plea for new blood

said. “There are a lot of everthem greens, gorgeous old trees and a [grass]carpet that muffles the sound … That’s the Victorian sensibility. Even in those brutal state institutions, there was a great respect for death.”

At least three incarcerated people from state prisons have been buried at the cemetery since March 1 - one from Fishkill, another from Sing Sing and a third from Otisville. The person from Sing Sing, who died March 30, and the individual from Otisville, who died April 3, had both tested positive for COVID-19.

As of Friday, 16 people in state custody — including five from Fishkill — have died from coronavirus. Of the 821 who have tested positive for COVID-19, 150 of have also been at Fishkill — the prison with the highest number of coronavirus cases.

The new graves are marked with nearly identical versions of the now-weathered trapezium headstones that have dotted the grounds since 1892.

“[The] graves do not have names on them, only numbers. That can seem very heartless — but back then, it was easier on their records to match up numbers with names,” Murnane said of the markers, many of which bear either a cross or the Star of David.

“There were a lot of very famous people buried here, and grave robbing was a big problem at the time,” she added, noting that serial killer Lizzie Halliday is among g those interred at the grounds. “That tradition continues today.”

Criminal justice advocates visited the site in recent weeks to pay their respects to those who have died during the pandemic, and to call on Gov. Cuomo to release more people from prison.

The recent vigils have brought some attention to the grounds — an otherwise secluded meadow set off from the bustle of suburban life.

“I remember thinking it was such a sad thing that this cemetery was back there … But the whole [place] is handled with care,” Murnane said. “There are no signs on the road telling you where it is out of respect for what the place is, so that remains [are] able to rest peacefully.”

With the city’s blood banks facing dire shortages during the coronavirus outbreak, Mayor de Blasio called on New Yorkers to lend some lifesaving liquid.

“So many New Yorkers are saying in this crisis, ‘What can I do, how can I help?’ ” he said. “One thing you can definitely do — one thing that will help for sure — is to give blood in this moment of crisis.”

The plea came after the Daily News reported Friday that the New York Blood Center only had enough blood to last one or two days. The facility supplies all of the city’s public hospitals, along with nearly 200 private hospitals throughout the state and in parts of New Jersey.

The Blood Center had a “few days’ supply” as of Sunday, according to de Blasio.

“For the last few months, blood drives have been disrupted,” he said. “We need to make a comeback quickly.”