Adrian Frater, News Editor

Western Bureau:

Militant residents of the 23 communities surrounding the controversial Delapenha's Funeral Home-owned Royal Rest Cemetery in Burnt Ground, Hanover, say they are willing and ready to put life and limb on the line to prevent burials from taking place at the site.

"We are ready to become our own heroes and heroines around here," said Diana Smith, a 52-year-old resident of Haughton Grove. "NEPA and the Government have sold us out but we are ready to fight to the bitter end and defend our cause by any means necessary," she added.

Ever since Delapenha's Funeral Home got permission from Government to start using the cemetery just under a month ago, residents of communities such as Copse, Haughton Grove, Ramble, Burnt Ground and Shettlewood have used mass demonstrations to thwart all attempts to have funerals there.

"Sunday gone a down a di cemetery my dinner cook because we decide fi stay down there and make sure no funeral nuh gwaan," said Andrea Bennett, a resident of Burnt Ground. "Funeral can only take place legally between 8:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. and we have people watching the cemetery during those hours."

Fear of contamination

The residents are contending that because the cemetery is situated in the same general water table as the Great River, which provides their domestic water supply, they fear that the chemical (formaldehyde) used to embalm bodies will seep into the water supply system and cause contamination.

On Monday, arsonists, believed to be sympathetic to the disgruntled residents, firebombed a section of the cemetery, causing over $2 million in damage.

"Mayhem and disorder have won," said businessman Dale Delapenha, of Delapenha's Funeral Home, reacting to the firebombing. "This is telling me that any group can stop the legal operation of any business in this country."

While not condoning the firebombing or any other illegal action, Ambleton Ray, the chairman of the Ramble Community Development Committee, said his group is committed to using every legal avenue available to prevent burials at the cemetery.

"We remain resolute in our knowledge that the EIA (environmental impact assessment) report was seriously flawed so we are not going to allow the contamination of our water supply," said Ray. "If the Government won't intervene, we are prepared to go all the way to the United Nations."

Meanwhile, the residents, a cross section of all age groups and professions, have vowed to stop all funerals by any means necessary.

"I don't need NEPA and Government to tell me about the water table here," said a 60-year-old, who noted that prior to Royal Rest, the Hanover Parish Council had long prohibited burials. "We know the situation here, we are our own scientists."