Crematorium fire likely caused by 500-pound body


A fire that damaged the roof of a crematorium in Virginia was likely sparked during the cremation of an obese body.

The Henrico Fire Marshal's office indicated that the rubber roofing near the smoke stack ignited due to excessive heat. WTKR reports that fire crews were quickly able to put the fire out, and everyone made it out of the building safely.

According to the Cremation Society of Virginia, an average size adult body takes two to three hours to burn in a typical crematory. It is believed that the extended length of time it took to cremate the 500-pound body caused the fire.

The operations manager of Southside Cremation Services said that he had not witnessed anything like this before in the 20 years he’s worked there, though he did say that the man was “a little larger” than they were used to handling.