It’s been nearly four weeks since a fire at the Collins Clarke MacGillivray White funeral home in Pointe-Claire, Que., and Leah Gilmore says she still has no idea what’s become of her parents’ remains.
“Nothing really,” she told Global News at the site. “All I know is that they found 250 urns and that they are in the process of trying to match them (with) who they belong to.”
According to her, that’s what the company told her when she called the company out of exasperation last week.
“They were being taken to the NDG funeral home,” she said she was told. One funeral home official, who wasn’t authorized to speak to the media, told Global News Thursday that the urns retrieved from the fire were being held at one of their facilities in NDG.
Urns containing the ashes of both Gilmore’s parents were at the Pointe-Claire site and she says she doesn’t know if they were destroyed, and that the wait is frustrating.
Pat Enborg says she’s also still waiting to know what’s going on after she contacted the company’s head office weeks ago.
“I don’t know whether my husband’s urn survived the fire or if it’s down at their head office or what they’re doing about it,” she pointed out.
Other families have also expressed frustration.
On Thursday, the latest post on the funeral home’s Facebook page was still the same one made two days after the fire, saying that they will continue to provide funeral services at other locations and that they are in the process of contacting families.
There was no apology, expression of empathy or details about what’s happening, something families who spoke to Global News say is unacceptable. Families say they understand it’s challenging for the company, but that officials could at least produce regular updates and information so that people aren’t left in the dark.
“At this point I just think it’s just plain cruel the way they’re treating the families,” Enborg said.
In a statement to Global News on Thursday, the company says their heart goes out to the families. It continues, “we understand that the clean-up process may be an inconvenience, and we appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding during this challenging time. However, understand that the cleanup process in the aftermath of the fire will be an extensive process.”
They conclude by saying they’ll be in touch with families before long, something both Gilmore and Enborg say can’t happen soon enough.
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