A riverbank collapse along the Cayuga Creek has forced St. Matthew's Cemetery in West Seneca to relocate more than 100 graves.
- 112 graves relocated due to erosion, bank collapse
- Cemetery says no burials were compromised
- Families say they were unaware of the moves
The cemetery says no burials were compromised and that they inserted 60-foot-long sheet walls to stabilize the graveyard.
Robin Hatton buried her son a year and a half ago, and told Spectrum News she was upset that she was not notified her son's grave would be moved.
"The bank has gone downhill where my son was," said Hatton, who adds she could not locate her son's grave on Easter Sunday. "Do you know how sad that is to come on Easter and have your son's grave look like this?"
"Never were any graves compromised," said Joseph Dispenza, president of Forest Lawn Group of Cemeteries and St. Matthew's Cemetery.
The section of St. Matthew's Garden of Good Shepard was studied by geologists and contractors who noticed the ground was shifting and immediate disinterment was necessary to prevent any damage.
"Unfortunately the profound power of nature has happened here," said Dispenza, who said they had to act quickly. "Obviously this was an emergency and remains an emergency process. I cannot contact families in advance simply because based on evolving soil conditions, I don't know which row I’m going to move to next."
"That's still not satisfying to me," said Vickie Starks Swain, who also was blindsided by the relocation of her father's grave.
As of Monday, 112 grave sites have been relocated from St. Matthew's Garden of Good Shepard to St. James Garden.
St. Matthew's Garden of Good Shepard will be closed indefinitely.
"Our internment team, our office manager and all of the resources of the cemetery at hand have all documentation double and triple checked so that every internment is relocated in the garden of St. James," said Dispenza.
Families affected by the reinternments are being notified with the exact location of their loved ones. A hotline is also available for families at 716-818-4713.