A crematorium has offered a behind the scenes tour of what goes on during a cremation – revealing heat from burning bodies could be used to warm the bereavement centre.
Bramcote Crematorium in Nottingham wanted to bust some of the myths surrounding cremations in a bid to show how much they care.
Louise Singer, the manager of the council-run Bramcote Bereavement Services, said the point of the day was to be open and transparent.
She told Nottinghamshire Live : "There are so many myths about what happens at a crematorium. People think we resell the coffins or mix the ashes so today is to show we are transparent and we care.
"We just want to reassure them through the process. We are also finding more people are planning their own funerals, choosing the chapel and music, and they want to look round."
Once the service is over, the crematorium team aims to burn the body within 24 hours, although the law allows them 72 hours.
The first step is to check nothing has been left in the coffin that shouldn’t be in there. It is also the last chance to make sure the deceased didn’t have a pacemaker.
If one of those exploded, it could lift the more than 20-tonne crematory machines seven inches in to the air.
The deceased are then wheeled in to one of the two machines. A gas-fuelled flame brings the temperature inside to up to between 800 and 1,000 degrees celsius. It is so hot a machine turned off on Friday evening will still be 300 degrees on Monday morning.
If it is an individual body part being burned (because it was needed for a post-mortem or left for science) it is burned on its own, not with other people’s organs.
The body is burned for around 90 minutes with staff using a spy hole to check when it is finished – when there are no visible flames.
During this process waste particles are sucked away and filtered to stop mercury from teeth fillings getting in to the atmosphere.
The crematorium, which cremates 3,000 people every year, is also looking to use the heat from this gas to warm the centre.
The ashes, which should have the consistency of sand, are then collected with a rake and left to cool for an hour.
Andy Hands, the senior operative, said the final weight ranges hugely from person to person, mostly depending on their bone density, but that he had heard it was supposed to be roughly the same as their birth weight.
They are then put in a machine that sieves them to remove any metal such as wedding rings or hip replacements, which are sent off to be recycled and the proceeds given to charity.
Relatives then chose whether they want to scatter the ashes at the crematorium or take them elsewhere – with some now choosing to have their loved ones put in to tattoos or jewellery.
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A form follows the body which has to be signed at every stage to avoid any mix ups and the basic cremation costs £687.
More than a hundred people came to the crematorium’s open day on Saturday September 8 – so what did visitors make of the tour?
Jackie Ellis, 60, of Bramcote, has already made arrangements for her own funeral, including the cremation.
She said: "I’ve always been interested in this kind of thing. I’m going to be cremated so it’s good to know what is going to happen to me."
Helen Barber, 54, of Toton, collected the ashes of 88-year-old dad Keith Jabbett, of Arnold, and visited to find out more about what happens once the service ends.
She said: "I think it’s a valuable day.
"People might think it’s strange to come and some might not be able to cope but I had no idea how it worked and it’s interesting to see."
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