Neepawa cemetery behind schedule

Details

Published on Friday, July 10, 2015

By Ken Waddell

The Neepawa Banner

The Banner has received a few complaints about the condition of the Neepawa cemetery (see the letter to the editor in the July 10 edition of the Neepawa Banner.)

The picture above shows that the weeds are getting out of hand and when the picture was shot Monday evening, the ground was powder dry. Parts of the town got significant rainfall on Tuesday night. 

There are several reasons for the condition of the cemetery this year. They include  an increase in the number of internments and the unexpected killing frost that made it necessary to replant some of the flowers. There have also been minor absences with a few staff due to leave entitlements. The  lack of rain has made it necessary for staff to commit a greater portion of their time to keeping the plants watered in order to get them rooted and keep them alive throughout the periods of excessive heat. Keeping the plants alive has taken precedence over weeding. 

While the Town of Neepawa has considered automating the irrigation at the cemetery, it’s still done by hand which is very labour intensive. The initial cost of installing automated irrigation would be significant but maybe it’s time to re-visit that project and free up labour for weeding and grass cutting.