Plans to expand and pave sections of the Tomlinson Cemetery have been delayed due to persistent rainfall, according to Cabinet spokesperson and Chief of Staff Ambassador Lionel Hurst.
Speaking during Thursday’s post-Cabinet media briefing, Hurst said, “Anytime it rains it becomes impossible — you cannot build roads in mud.”
The upgrades include constructing internal roads and a parking apron to prevent congestion on the nearby highway during funerals.
Hurst confirmed that these works have not yet started, citing weather conditions as the primary obstacle.
“We must build some roads, we must build a parking apron… those things have to be done and they aren’t being done as yet in part because of the rain,” he said.
While reaffirming the government’s intention to complete the works, Hurst also raised the possibility of shifting burial practices over the long term.
“We are going to have to move to cremation,” he said, noting limited land space and the growing annual number of deaths in Antigua and Barbuda, which he placed at “about 500 a year.”
Hurst added that other jurisdictions have already adopted alternative practices.
“In Bermuda… they actually reuse the graves by removing the remains and taking them out to sea and dumping them.”
He said he has personally expressed a preference for cremation, remarking, “I’ve already told my sister… that I’m to be cremated so that we can save some space and she can bury me in my mother’s grave.”
While officials did not provide a revised timeline for the completion of works at Tomlinson Cemetery, the issue remains a priority for urban planning as the population grows and available burial space continues to shrink.
