Test graves dug at seaside cemetery
• It will be known in the coming months if the grave trials have been successful at the Bridport Cemetery. Image supplied.
By Taylor Clyne
July 08, 2020
After a 28-year hiatus the Bridport Cemetery on Walter Street may soon be given the green light for local burials to recommence after the site had been plagued with drainage issues.
Mayor Greg Howard said the decision to close the cemetery back in September 1992 was due to serious water issues.
“Graves were filling up with water and not just a little bit, a lot of water causing caskets to rise and making burials themselves extremely challenging,” he said.
“It’s taken us a long while to work out how we were going to solve it and give the community back this place of rest.”
Throughout the past few years Council have spent $24,000 on their discovery project, digging trenches and installing drainage on the topside of the cemetery.
“We’ve played a bit of trial and error in the hope that we could solve the issue and recommence burials at Bridport.
“All the infrastructure has now been installed and to prove that the drainage is working we have dug a few test holes to see if they make water,” Mayor Howard said.
“We now have to leave them open for a few weeks, until we get a significant rainfall event to see what happens at the peak of the wet season.
“We hope this test is successful and in turn will allow the people of Bridport to be able to bury their loved ones in close locations for visiting.