Shortly after the Pandemic began in March, Vale Superintendent Clark Adams received a phone call from an area funeral director. He told Clark that the funeral home where he interred had a crisis situation where the crematory in New York City that they usually used was backed up causing a 7-day delay for cremations. Because of the delay the funeral home was storing bodies in a refrigerated trailer on their premises. He wanted to know if Vale could help rectify the situation.
Clark told them he could accommodate 8 bodies if they could be at Vale by 8 A.M. A few days later a Long Island funeral asked if Vale could help with their cremation backlog.
Thus, began weeks of long hours for Vale’s crematory staff. Many days the staff worked from 8 A.M. to 10 P.M. Some nights an employee would have to come in after midnight to start or complete a cremation. Added to this was the risk of infection with the virus when working with Covid-19 victims.
Strict precautions were scrupulously followed to protect staff and minimize the possibility of spread.
Superintendent Clark Adams and his staff are to be commended for the superb effort they put forth in the crisis.