FT. WAYNE, IN (Indiana's Newscenter)
National cemeteries are bustling places
these days, with more than 100 burials scheduled each day in Ohio
and elsewhere.
At Ohio Western Reserve National Cemetery in northeast Ohio,
officials are using heavy construction equipment to make room.
About 10 percent of the 1,800 veterans who die each day are buried
at such national cemeteries.
The Pentagon's top official for veterans' funerals, Bill Tuerk,
says this year or last year will be the peak for such funerals.
Veterans from World War II, Korea and Vietnam are dying at a strong
rate.
At Ohio Western Reserve, officials bury an average of seven
veterans a day. The busiest national cemetery is Riverside National
Cemetery near Los Angeles. It averages about 30 burials, followed
by Florida National Cemetery near Tampa.
Third busiest is Calverton National Cemetery, about 50 miles
east of Manhattan. To accommodate so many burials, hundreds of
crypts are pre-placed at Calverton, then covered with dirt and
grass. When it comes time for a burial, the sod is cut away, the
crypt opened and the casket lowered in.
Six new national cemeteries are under construction.