AIKEN COUNTY, S.C. (WJBF) – The Aiken County Coroner’s Office released a statement Wednesday concerning an accidental cremation that took place this week.
According to Coroner Darryl Ables, the body of a deceased person was released by a staff member of the Aiken County Coroner’s Office to the custody of a funeral home to be cremated on June 23. However, the body of the person was misidentified by the staff member, “inadvertently released to the funeral home, and should not have been cremated.”
The mistake was discovered on Tuesday, June 24.
Upon discovering the incident, Coroner Ables reported the situation to the Aiken County Attorney’s Office and to the South Carolina Coroners’ Association. He also reportedly notified the South Carolina Funeral Directors’ Association and to the South Carolina Department of Labor, Licensing, and Regulation of the situation because a funeral home and a crematory were also involved in the incident.
The coroner’s office stated the process of releasing a body involves many steps, “and the number of steps depends upon how many agencies are involved in the final disposition.”
“This incident is very unfortunate, and we are deeply remorseful to the family of the decedent, Coroner Ables stated. “Accurate identification and verification at intake and release are critical to the process for all agencies involved, and we accept full accountability for our portion of the incident. I will conduct a thorough review of this incident to determine exactly how the error occurred and to ensure that it never happens again.”
According to the coroner’s office, no other details concerning the situation will be released.
