Deathcare Profession Link Round-Up 11

Each month we will post links to pertinent articles in the deathcare profession. From lawsuits to quirky sites, we’ll bring you a one-stop shop from deathcare-related items on the web. Here are this month’s links. German obesity rates trigger crematoria safety concerns, The Telegraph Cremations have gone awry and uncontrolled fires started by temperatures generated by the combustion of the high fat content of the obese dead. News magazine Der Spiegel reported an incident at a crematorium in Hamelin earlier this year when the cremation of a 440-pound corpse led to flames shooting out of its 35-foot chimney and metal elements melting. The fire brigade estimated that temperatures in the chimney hit 1,100F (600C), and it eventually took four hours to reduce the corpse to ashes.

New UAE crematorium caters for expat funeral needs, BBC News Under Islam, the official religion, burial is the only option when somebody dies. This is the UAE's newest crematorium - and the only one in the Gulf to have a non-Muslim graveyard alongside it.

Discovery of Indian artifacts complicates Genesis solar project, Kansas City Star Howling winds uncovered a human tooth and a handful of burned bone fragments the size of quarters on a sand dune in the shadow of new solar power transmission towers. Indians say the discovery is evidence of a Native American cremation site not detected in Southern California Edison's archaeological survey before the towers were built.

Cremated remains create S. Jersey mystery, Philly.com Authorities are trying to figure out how a “well-tended” grave came to be placed under a tree in Gloucester Township, Camden County and whose body it contained. Investigators have been puzzled at how to solve the mystery of what appear to be cremated human remains in the grave. The grave site overlooks a potter’s field and is situated on county property, but not in a legal burial location. Here's the follow-up article, also from Philly.com.

Deathcare Profession Link Round-Up 10

Each month we will post links to pertinent articles in the deathcare profession. From lawsuits to quirky sites, we’ll bring you a one-stop shop from deathcare-related items on the web. Here are this month’s links. Wish our son was here to light the pyre, said Bhagwan's wife, Hindustan Times "Carrying out the last rites is the duty of the eldest son as per Hindu traditions. But our relatives just could not make it," said Rajesh Kumar, nephew of Bhagwan Dass, who belonged to district Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh.

Improbable research: the problem of exploding pacemakers, The Guardian People muse that they will, come the day, "go out with a bang". A little more often than you might expect, someone or other does exactly that, which is why there came into existence a study called Pacemaker Explosions in Crematoria: Problems and Possible Solutions.

Woman's husband's ashes lost in the mail, WABC

Deathcare Profession Link Round-Up 8

Each month we will post links to pertinent articles in the deathcare profession. From lawsuits to quirky sites, we’ll bring you a one-stop shop from deathcare-related items on the web. Here are this month’s links. Battle over athlete Jim Thorpe’s burial site continues, The Washington Post When Patsy Thorpe — the third and most difficult spouse of Jim Thorpe, that primordial American athlete — pulled up to her husband’s in-progress Native American funeral service at a farm on the night of April 12, 1953, with a hearse and a highway patrolman in tow, everybody knew something bad was about to happen.

A thought for the dear departed, The Hindu The Mokshda cremation system, installed recently in Delhi, provides an eco-friendly option to citizens.

Govt to boost rates of cremation, China Daily The downward trend for cremations in China may begin to reverse following a plan to cut or waive funeral expenses for poor households that choose cremation.

Thousands of Tibetans attend cremation of ‘martyr’, The Times of India Thousands of Tibetans gathered at the main temple when Jamphel Yeshi (26), a Tibetan who died after setting himself on fire in Delhi, was cremated like a martyr by Tibetan exiles at McLeodganj on Friday. Strangely, the Dalai Lama, who was in the town, was not present while Tibetan prime minister-in-exile Lobsang Sangay was in Japan.

Documents show debate over handling of 9/11 remains, Reuters Cremated remains that may have included those of victims of the September 11 attacks were incinerated and sent to a landfill despite an internal debate in which some officials at the main U.S. military mortuary recommended the ashes be dispersed at sea.

'Death and Cremation' Burns home Video This April, Bloody Disgusting Some relationships can really burn you up in Death and Cremation (review), on DVD April 24 from Green Apple Entertainment.

And finally, a little fake news... Dead Body Explodes in Funeral Home, Weekly World News

The corpse blew a casket! Family members who gather at a Texas funeral home to mourn the death of 38-year-old Robert Cavazos Jr. reeled in horror when the dead man’s corpse suddenly exploded, according to their shocking lawsuit.

Deathcare Profession Link Round-Up 7

Each month we will post links to pertinent articles in the deathcare profession. From lawsuits to quirky sites, we’ll bring you a one-stop shop from deathcare-related items on the web. Here are this month’s links. Japan Finds Story of Hope in Undertaker Who Offered Calm Amid Disaster, The New York Times “I dreaded finding my mother’s body, lying alone on the cold ground among strangers,” Mrs. Arai, 36, said. “When I saw her peaceful, clean face, I knew someone had taken care of her until I arrived. That saved me.” Atsushi Chiba used Buddhist rituals in caring for nearly 1,000 bodies in Kamaishi.

Secrets of St Albans' Roman burial urns unlocked, BBC News CT scanners are being used to help unlock the secrets of five Roman burial urns that were discovered at a housing development in Hertfordshire.

How to be Environmentally Green Even in Death, US News & World Report The world of consumer choice has come to the funeral industry. And the choice being offered is between a funeral process using traditional cremation in a high-temperature chamber and a new process that uses pressure-heated water and chemicals to achieve the same results.

What to do with a loved one's ashes, The Guardian They pose a peculiarly modern problem. Some scatter them, others bury them. You can even launch them in a firework. But what if you can't make up your mind what to do with a loved one's ashes after the cremation?

A nail in the coffin of old funeral ways, The Independent (UK) The UK's obesity epidemic may soon see a generation of people departing this life in a less than traditional fashion. Super-size ovens at crematoriums, designer coffins, and lifting gear to lower caskets into graves are also part of the modern way of death in Britain.

A Thai Cremation, dpreview.com This site is dedicated to allowing users to review the photos of one another, and user posted beautiful images of a monk's cremation in Thailand.

Deathcare Profession Link Round-Up 3

Each month we will post links to pertinent articles in the deathcare profession. From lawsuits to quirky sites, we’ll bring you a one-stop shop from deathcare-related items on the web. Here are this month’s links.

Pet owners who can't let go turn to freeze-drying, MSNBC.com Expensive niche taxidermy takes sensitivity and skill, but it's growing across the U.S. Mike McCullough never intended to start freeze-drying beloved pets for grieving owners. But more than a decade ago, a friend of a friend asked the Fort Loudon, Pa., taxidermist to save his beloved dog from the grave or cremation by preserving the animal instead. McCullough agreed. Then he talked to a Wall Street Journal reporter about the process. It made the front page. Requests from bereaved owners started rolling in.

Sisters carry dead brother to cremation ground, The Times of India Three sisters have gone a step ahead in getting their brother closer to his final journey. Setting aside the taboo, the sisters on Thursday lent a shoulder in getting their brother to the cremation grounds. Though, a daughter lending a shoulder for the father is now somewhat common in parts of Punjab, carrying the brother to the cremation ground is unheard off.

Funeral Director Sues Yorktown Highway Chief, The Daily Yorktown William LaPierre, the owner of Clark Funeral Home, has filed a lawsuit against Highway Superintendent Eric DiBartolo and others for several hundred thousands of dollars LaPierre claims DiBartolo misappropriated from the town.

Pentagon admits it dumped some 9/11 remains in a landfill, MSNBC.com For the first time, the Defense Department acknowledged Tuesday that some cremated remains of victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks were dumped in a landfill, conduct the White House called "unacceptable." For more on this story, also see The Chicago Tribune, and Stars and Stripes.

Senate Bill Passes Requiring Proper Burial for Veterans, The Weekly The Georgia Senate passed SB 372 today in a unanimous vote. Sponsored by Sen. Renee Unterman (R-Buford), this legislation would require funeral directors to make a reasonable effort to determine whether the deceased is a veteran.

Roots & Branches: Tombstones are better with a verse or two, LDNews.com OK, it's time to come around to one of my favorite "gripes" - how little information people today put on gravestones.

Bihar to use eunuchs to improve birth registration, The Times of India Worried over the lowest ever birth and death registration figures in Bihar, the state government has decided to engage eunuchs and traditional cremation workers called 'doms' to improve birth and death registration rates in the state, officials said.