Shortage of space hits cemetery

Cemeteries are becoming overcrowded

New graves in a Donegal cemetery are to be reduced in width because of pressure on space, a parish priest has ruled.

St Mary's Cemetery at Cockhill is the main burial ground for Buncrana in the county's Inishowen Pininsula.

Fr John Walsh told the Irish News he was forced to limit the width of graves to 4ft to save space.

However, he said he would permit gravediggers to dig plots deeper so that graves could hold three coffins instead of two.

Fr Walsh's decision also means the end of "double" graves which are popular with some families because relatives can be buried side by side.

"In the past we had double graves dug with the remains of only one person in them," he said.

"We just don't have the space to allow such provision anymore."

Cremation is becoming increasingly popular throughout Ireland and is viewed as an effective way of dealing with shortage of space in cemeteries.

Fr Walsh, however, said no-one had been cremated in the eight years since he came to Buncrana.

No charge for burial is made for parishioner at St Mary's but non-residents are charged a fee of 300 euro.

The parish priest said gravediggers could now dig plots to a depth of 9ft provided they were no wider than 4ft.