Graves may have to be resited

IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS, it will be known whether graves at Holy Innocents Church, St Thomas, will have to be relocated to facilitate roadworks.
But Archdeacon Eric Lynch of the Anglican Church has given the assurance that should the need arise, all of the necessary steps will be taken to ensure a smooth process.
The roadworks by Rayside Construction form part of the Holy Innocents Highway 2 Improvement Project and are expected to be completed by July.
With the road being widened to provide a footpath for the children of the nearby Holy Innocents Primary School, members of the church and visitors to Harrison’s Cave, Lynch said the possibility existed that the cemetery could present complications for the project.
“We will know by the end of this week or early next week if the graves will have to be moved. If they are to be moved, I can assure you it will be done in a systematic way, and we will follow all of the necessary procedures which are required,” he said yesterday.
He added that as a safety precaution, several headstones had been moved away from the work area due to their extreme brittleness and would be returned to their original locations once the roadworks were completed.
He insisted the church was in full support of the roadworks.
“The Government could not compulsorily acquire the land for this purpose, but we had no issue cooperating with them to get the project up and running.”
Rayside’s contracts manager Roger Padmore said work was progressing smoothly and was on course to finish by the July deadline. (RB)