'It's torture to see this': Heartbreak as flooding leaves baby graves submerged
Devastated mothers who lost their children during pregnancy have suffered further heartbreak due to flooding at the memorial garden their babies are buried in.
Almost all of the 24 graves in the section at North Walsall Cemetery in Bloxwich were submerged in water last weekend as a result of recent stormy weather.
Grieving parents say drainage issues mean problems have occurred every time it has rained since the first baby was buried there in April last year.
As a result they have been unable to erect headstones, tend to their children’s plots properly and have seen tributes such as flowers and cuddly toys wrecked.
Walsall Council said the cemetery was built on a glacial till in 1996 and the top layer of clay soil causes drainage issues. The authority has now pledged to fund a £250,000 new drainage system.
But Leanne Halls-Albutt, who buried her son Ruben there last month after his heart suddenly stopped when she was 21 weeks pregnant, claimed the council has only acted after she and others posted pictures on social media highlighting the flooding.
Residents, local councillors and Walsall North MP Eddie Hughes contacted the authority to raise concerns, she added.
Wait to erect headstone
Blakenall councillor Matt Ward said is was a “disgrace” the funding has been left on a “reserve” list of projects when the work should have been done sooner.
Mrs Halls-Albutt said: “It’s heartbreaking. Like we haven’t been through enough and we have to come and see that. It’s not acceptable. We want to come and grieve. It’s disgusting.
“We can’t put stones down because the ground is too wet as a result of the poor drainage. One woman has bought a headstone and has been waiting since October to put it up.
“The council say they are doing the work now but I’ll believe it when I see it. So many people have been complaining about it but nothing has been done until now.
“They have now approved the £250,000 for the new drainage system but it should have been approved before the first baby was buried. It should not have come to this.
“It’s terrible. I do hope they sort it, I really do. But it feels like it has only become a priority now that it was put on social media and got a strong reaction.”
She said she had been told staff have to scoop water out with buckets when they dig each grave because the water is so bad.
She added: “They have continued to bury babies here and they will continue to do so.”
'Torture'
Blakenall resident Sarah Battison’s daughter Maisie Grace was the first baby to be buried there in April last year after her heart stopped beating at 20 weeks.
With the plot being on the end of the garden at the bottom of a slope, Maisie Grace’s grave often bears the brunt of the flooding.
Ms Battison said: “I find it hard to come down here anyway but this is heartbreaking. You bury your baby there and you don’t expect to find it flooded the way it is. We struggle to put anything on the grave.
“We’ve gone through enough. Maisie was the first baby born here almost a year ago so they’ve known this happens since then.
“Obviously, it’s a good thing they are going to do something but it is bad that it has come to people putting stuff on Facebook for it to happen.”
Jessica Lymn added: “My son Finley was 34 weeks still born. One weekend, they had shut the gates early because of the storm. They wouldn’t let me in. Last weekend, it was really bad. Almost all of the garden was covered.
“The grass area turns into pools and it is more like a swamp.
“It’s bad enough you have lost your little one and the heartache that comes with that. There are no words for it, it’s horrendous.
“And then the only place you can go for a bit of time to see them. This is the last place they will be. It’s torture to come to see this.”
Councillor Ward said: “I couldn’t believe it when I saw it. These families have gone through the trauma and heartbreak of losing their babies and they can’t even grieve for them at their graves.
“It’s absolutely disgusting and the funding should have been made available for this much sooner than this. The council needs to act and do this as soon as possible.”
Capital funding
Walsall Council said the work to install a new drainage system is expected to start in the coming months.
Councillor Garry Perry portfolio holder for cemeteries crematoria said: “North Walsall Cemetery is a special and reflective place and it is upsetting for everyone to see this water damage caused by the recent bouts of terrible weather.
“This is a place of rest. We will certainly be taking prompt action to address the immediate drainage issues, but in the longer term and I am confident that my recent bid for capital funding to install a new system at the cemetery will prevent water-logging of this nature ever happening again.”
He added: “Capital expenditure programmes are regularly assessed by council officers and prioritised accordingly.
“In light of the recent and unprecedented heavy rainfall it is right and proper that the capital programme is adjusted to ensure these works now take place.
“We will also outline what these works are at the appropriate time.”
