SpurNation
10-02-2009, 08:34 PM
Cities Too Poor To Bury Dead (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/01/cities-too-poor-to-bury-d_n_306702.html)
Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/01/cities-too-poor-to-bury-d_n_306702.html (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/01/cities-too-poor-to-bury-d_n_306702.html)
The Huffington Post | Julian Hattem
First Posted: 10- 1-09 02:59 PM | Updated: 10- 1-09 04:52 PM
http://images.huffingtonpost.com/gen/108569/thumbs/s-MEXICO-TOO-MANY-large.jpg
In morgues across the country the corpses of dead poor are stacking up as the the government runs out of money to bury them. State and county budgets for interring indigent and unclaimed bodies have been drying up faster than usual in the current economy, as more families are unable to come up with the money to lay their loved ones to rest.
CNN's Assignment Detroit project released a report Thursday (http://money.cnn.com/2009/10/01/news/economy/_morgue/) detailing how 67 people lie in wait at the Wayne County morgue. Unemployment, at a staggering 28% in Detroit (http://blogs.abcnews.com/theworldnewser/2009/08/unemployment-in-detroit-climbs-to-289.html), prevents many from affording to provide their family members a final resting place, and Detroit's $21,000 annual budget to bury unclaimed bodies ran out three months ago. More bodies are being left to the control of the state, who are having a harder time picking up the slack.
Detroit may be over-exposed as a cite of poverty porn (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/29/getting-the-detroit-story_n_303064.html), but stacks of stagnant bodies rotting in city buildings offer a bleak picture of the city's ability to provide for its most vulnerable citizens. Carl Schmidt, Wayne County's chief medical examiner, noted the despair of the condition. "There are many people with sad lives," he said, "But it is even sadder when even after you are dead, there is no one to pick you up."
Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/01/cities-too-poor-to-bury-d_n_306702.html (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/01/cities-too-poor-to-bury-d_n_306702.html)
The Huffington Post | Julian Hattem
First Posted: 10- 1-09 02:59 PM | Updated: 10- 1-09 04:52 PM
http://images.huffingtonpost.com/gen/108569/thumbs/s-MEXICO-TOO-MANY-large.jpg
In morgues across the country the corpses of dead poor are stacking up as the the government runs out of money to bury them. State and county budgets for interring indigent and unclaimed bodies have been drying up faster than usual in the current economy, as more families are unable to come up with the money to lay their loved ones to rest.
CNN's Assignment Detroit project released a report Thursday (http://money.cnn.com/2009/10/01/news/economy/_morgue/) detailing how 67 people lie in wait at the Wayne County morgue. Unemployment, at a staggering 28% in Detroit (http://blogs.abcnews.com/theworldnewser/2009/08/unemployment-in-detroit-climbs-to-289.html), prevents many from affording to provide their family members a final resting place, and Detroit's $21,000 annual budget to bury unclaimed bodies ran out three months ago. More bodies are being left to the control of the state, who are having a harder time picking up the slack.
Detroit may be over-exposed as a cite of poverty porn (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/09/29/getting-the-detroit-story_n_303064.html), but stacks of stagnant bodies rotting in city buildings offer a bleak picture of the city's ability to provide for its most vulnerable citizens. Carl Schmidt, Wayne County's chief medical examiner, noted the despair of the condition. "There are many people with sad lives," he said, "But it is even sadder when even after you are dead, there is no one to pick you up."