Channel 2 Cobb County Bureau Reporter Michele Newell spoke with a photographer who traveled all the way from England to take pictures of the funeral home for his social media page called Places Forgotten.
He couldn’t believe what he discovered in Cobb County.
“Bank statements of burials, bank statements of people who had paid for burials. I’ve found lots of ashes at funeral homes, maybe one or two, but to find this amount was crazy, I’ve never seen such a big amount,” James said. “It was very alarming.”
James said he found more than 30 urns and bags of human ashes. Some were labeled with names, others weren’t.
He told Newell that there were family photos, death certificates, credit card information, and even hazardous chemicals.
“There was a discarded human fetus in a jar just left in the embalming room. What’s the back story to it? How can that just been forgotten about? It’s very sad,” James said.
The building was up for a foreclosure auction before the fire happened. The cause of the fire is undetermined. The building is set to be demolished.
“You’ve got to wonder where the families are for these people. Why haven’t they been picked up? And also, do the families even know they are in there?” James said.
Newell contacted the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office about it and received a statement, saying: “The Cemeteries Board is looking into the matter and will work with the Funeral Services Board to leave no stone unturned. The Funeral Services Board stated to me that they are also working with the Marietta Police on this. This matter is an active investigation.”
Newell also asked the president of the funeral consumers’ alliance, Sara Williams, what actions families can take in situations like this.
“I would suggest they band together. Form a coalition to the state board of funeral service and demand restitution,” Williams said.
Marietta police got a tip about what was in the building on Tuesday night and began investigating.
They are working with the funeral services board.
PHOTO GALLERY:
PHOTOS: Photographers makes gruesome discovery inside burnt out funeral home Ben James said he loves to capture the most interesting, abandoned places in the world. Inside the Norman Medford Peden Funeral Home and Crematory, he found more than 30 urns and bags of human ashes, as well as a host of other things. (WSBTV.com News Staff)
PHOTOS: Photographers makes gruesome discovery inside burnt out funeral home Ben James said he loves to capture the most interesting, abandoned places in the world. Inside the Norman Medford Peden Funeral Home and Crematory, he found more than 30 urns and bags of human ashes, as well as a host of other things. (WSBTV.com News Staff)
PHOTOS: Photographers makes gruesome discovery inside burnt out funeral home Ben James said he loves to capture the most interesting, abandoned places in the world. Inside the Norman Medford Peden Funeral Home and Crematory, he found more than 30 urns and bags of human ashes, as well as a host of other things. (WSBTV.com News Staff)
PHOTOS: Photographers makes gruesome discovery inside burnt out funeral home Ben James said he loves to capture the most interesting, abandoned places in the world. Inside the Norman Medford Peden Funeral Home and Crematory, he found more than 30 urns and bags of human ashes, as well as a host of other things. (WSBTV.com News Staff)
PHOTOS: Photographers makes gruesome discovery inside burnt out funeral home Ben James said he loves to capture the most interesting, abandoned places in the world. Inside the Norman Medford Peden Funeral Home and Crematory, he found more than 30 urns and bags of human ashes, as well as a host of other things. (WSBTV.com News Staff)
PHOTOS: Photographers makes gruesome discovery inside burnt out funeral home Ben James said he loves to capture the most interesting, abandoned places in the world. Inside the Norman Medford Peden Funeral Home and Crematory, he found more than 30 urns and bags of human ashes, as well as a host of other things. (WSBTV.com News Staff)
PHOTOS: Photographers makes gruesome discovery inside burnt out funeral home Ben James said he loves to capture the most interesting, abandoned places in the world. Inside the Norman Medford Peden Funeral Home and Crematory, he found more than 30 urns and bags of human ashes, as well as a host of other things. (WSBTV.com News Staff)
PHOTOS: Photographers makes gruesome discovery inside burnt out funeral home Ben James said he loves to capture the most interesting, abandoned places in the world. Inside the Norman Medford Peden Funeral Home and Crematory, he found more than 30 urns and bags of human ashes, as well as a host of other things. (WSBTV.com News Staff)
PHOTOS: Photographers makes gruesome discovery inside burnt out funeral home Ben James said he loves to capture the most interesting, abandoned places in the world. Inside the Norman Medford Peden Funeral Home and Crematory, he found more than 30 urns and bags of human ashes, as well as a host of other things. (WSBTV.com News Staff)
PHOTOS: Photographers makes gruesome discovery inside burnt out funeral home Ben James said he loves to capture the most interesting, abandoned places in the world. Inside the Norman Medford Peden Funeral Home and Crematory, he found more than 30 urns and bags of human ashes, as well as a host of other things. (WSBTV.com News Staff)
PHOTOS: Photographers makes gruesome discovery inside burnt out funeral home Ben James said he loves to capture the most interesting, abandoned places in the world. Inside the Norman Medford Peden Funeral Home and Crematory, he found more than 30 urns and bags of human ashes, as well as a host of other things. (WSBTV.com News Staff)
PHOTOS: Photographers makes gruesome discovery inside burnt out funeral home Ben James said he loves to capture the most interesting, abandoned places in the world. Inside the Norman Medford Peden Funeral Home and Crematory, he found more than 30 urns and bags of human ashes, as well as a host of other things. (WSBTV.com News Staff)