Noting that the township of Linden records an average of 20 deaths per month, Mayor Sharma Solomon said the Town Council is currently in the process of identifying an alternative burial site.
Solomon explained that this decision was made following the discovery of a significant lack of space at the town’s primary burial ground, the Christiansburg Cemetery.
“At the moment, without alarming the public we are running out of space at the Christiansburg Cemetery for burials…We don’t have a year more, maybe a few more months – six months – maximum, based on the rate of deaths. We have roughly about 120 more spots at Christiansburg Cemetery,” the mayor said during a live broadcast on his social media page.
In this regard, the Mayor noted that authorities are currently looking at several burial alternatives which include the expansion of the Bamia Cemetery and acquiring lands from farmers in the Christiansburg area.
“A few options…expand the Christiansburg area by approaching farmers in the area and asking those farmers to help us with some land.”
The Mayor explained that if these efforts are futile, the council will move to identify a suitable location to establish a third burial ground in the region.
“We are looking at available lands and those will have to certainly be if not convenient locations which is difficult, we’ll have to look at places such as the Rockstone Road. Think about that or the Ituni Road, I think about that or as far as Moblissa.”
Additionally, the Mayor said that by law, town councils are permitted to revisit old grave sites after several years and refurbish them to provide space for more burials.
Currently in Linden Region 10 (Upper Demerara- Upper Berbice) there are only two established burial grounds the Christiansburg Cemetery, which is located at the back of the Christiansburg community and the Bamia Cemetery which is located at Bamia on the Linden Soesdyke Highway.
