The cemetery next to the burned-down chapel in Veghel will keep its gate closed to visitors for the time being. Due to the unstable walls of the chapel, there is a danger of collapse. Relatives are therefore not allowed to visit the graves for the time being. The fire raged in the night from old to new.
“I can imagine that it is very emotional,” says secretary Elly van Liempt. “There are people who normally visit a grave every day because their spouse, parent or child is buried there. If that is suddenly no longer possible, it is very sensitive for them. That is why we want to handle this carefully.”
No damage to the tombs themselves
Van Liempt urges as many people as possible to the heart that no damage can be seen at the graves and urnfields. “I went to see for myself and it’s not too bad,” she assures. However, some ornaments have fallen over, there is soot on the graves and a lot of sand has been washed away by the fire extinguishing water.
“It could be because of that, if it’s really an old grave, that some of the coffin has become exposed. And that’s just not a pretty picture, so we keep the gate closed.”
Shouldn’t take long
For the time being, the cemetery must remain closed until the municipality releases the site again. On Monday they will start stabilizing the chapel wall. “It is therefore possible that we will be open again at the end of next week. If the municipality allows it and everything is in order again, all relatives can simply come by again.”
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