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Valley Voice
Like a zombie apocalypse movie, the Tulare Public Cemetery District just can’t seem to keep their bodies buried.
On March 8 the cemetery disinterred two bodies that had been buried in the wrong graves, but they were not the first.
Since 2016, eight disinterments have occurred, and according to a source close to the inner workings of the main office, there are more misplaced bodies at Tulare Cemetery than the public will ever know.
In the latest incident, the cemetery’s groundskeeper says he was told to ignore the mix up because the deceased person’s family lived out of town and might not notice the burial plot error.
Later, the cemetery sought to correct the mistake. One of the families acknowledged being contacted by TPCD and told them that a disinterment and reburial would take place three days later.
“Our family suffered double the grief having to bury our grandfather twice,” said Maricela Martinez. “No one deserves that.”
The cemetery district board met the day after the reburials. Their agenda referenced anticipated litigation for two cases, presumably meaning the two families involved in the disinterment.
By Catherine Doe | 19 March 2021