Cremation: A Suggestion for Burial of Ebola Victims.

By Imodale Caulker Burnett, Virginia, USA.*

Dear Sierra Leonean Friends and Family,

The reports from home, which we get on the internet and Face book as well as from the phone calls we make, are getting worse each day. We are already in serious trouble. If more aggressive action is not taken soon, the situation will be untenable!

In a discussion with some of my family and friends, it became clear that one of the biggest problems, is the burial of the Ebola victims. Many of our people are dismayed or even traumatized by the thought of their loved ones being buried in unmarked graves and in such an undignified manner. Many of these folks would rather hide the corpses and take a chance in spreading the virus (which is at its highest level for infection) and compromising even their own safety, than subject their loved ones to what they may see as a disgraceful burial.

However, with a disease such as this, we came to the conclusion that the best and safest way to keep the virus from spreading any more than it has, is to begin cremations.

I know there are some issues surrounding cremation which must be dealt with, but they are all surmountable.

1. There are few, if any Crematoria in the country. In fact, to the best of my knowledge there may be one either at the Kingtom Cemetery or at Kissy Road Cemetery. But in the present situation, we can either build a few more crematoriums or we can improvise. In India, corpses are placed on funeral pyres. I understand that the thought of this will be sacrilegious to many of our people. But life is sacred and we are trying to save lives. Funeral Pyres or Cremation may be a necessary method to save the living in the country. Cremating a corpse will not do anything to the spirit of the deceased, who has already left the earth.

2. To those who are appalled by a suggestion such as this, the Ancestors will understand the reason for this method, which is not done out of disrespect but rather out of a great respect for the safety of the living in our beloved country.

3. When the virus has been totally cleared, the government can set a day or days of

Thanksgiving, complete with Awujoh or Sarra, or pin chop, to appease the Ancestors.

The ceremonies can be done by district and planning can be started now. This way,

everyone in the country will participate and be fed, and the burden will not be on only a

few people.

This is simply a suggestion, but I would welcome some discussion as to the value of such.

*Imodale Caulker Burnett is a retired Family Nurse Practitioner, who lives with her husband in Virginia, USA. She is also the Chair of the Melvin E Stuart Trust Fund, which runs the Well Woman Clinic here in Freetown. She is currently the Director of the Lesana Community Development Services, a CBO, which is working to develop the Town of Mambo, (her late father’s Birthplace) Kagboro Chiefdom. This work brings her home every year.

Editor’s Note: Here is a video on the cremation process in Britain. This is remarkably different from what normally happens in a place like India: