Mourner hits out at ‘disrespectful’ warning signs placed on grandparents' graves
A mourner has hit out at ‘disrespectful’ warning signs placed on several gravestones that were deemed to be a hazard.
Paul Ford, 39, is angry that a warning sign was placed on his grandparents’ grave in the UK, obstructing their names.
Rows of headstones were covered with safety notices by inspectors.
A total of 190 of the 3,800 graves tested at Efford Cemetery in Devon, south western England, were ruled unsafe after a recent inspection carried out on behalf of the council.
In most cases, families were formally told in writing to arrange getting them fixed.
But some have now been tagged with yellow stickers urging owners to make them safe as soon as possible.
The council says it conducts the surveys every five years to keep its cemeteries in good order.
But it said it can sometimes be difficult to track down the families of those who have passed, so warning notices have to be placed on the graves to try to alert them.
“Where they have put the placard you cannot see who has been buried there; it looks more like a building site,” Mr Ford said.
“I think it’s disrespectful to cover up the names of the dead. If it was on the back it would be okay, but it’s not.
“They should have made more effort not to cover up the names. It’s an eyesore.”
The local council explained their reasons for putting up the signs.
“We check each and every memorial in our cemeteries every five years for signs of defects that could make them dangerous to visitors,” a spokesman for Plymouth City Council said.
“An inspection is carried out by monumental masons and the memorial is tested for stability.
“Our recent round of inspections showed that only five per cent of the 3,800 memorials that have been tested at Efford Cemetery this summer had defects.
“The deed holder/owner of the grave is responsible for the memorial, so if a memorial is found unsafe and/or in need of repair we’ll send a letter to the address we’ve got on record.
“When this is not possible, we place a warning sign on the grave to advise the owner how to contact us to talk about options for repair.”
