500lb corpse causes grease fire at crematorium

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A crematorium off Mechanicsville Turnpike caught fire Wednesday afternoon as an employee was cremating a 500 pound body. Neighbors could see the smoke billowing from the smokestack around noon. The fire marshal is ruling it an accident.

"The body was so obese that the actual body fat came off and went straight up the sack and hit the roof material, the rubber roof we have up there and that's what made it go up like it did…It was no negligence involved in it. My guys, we did all we could. Once it started, the grease hit the roof and started the fire, the only thing we could do is dial 911 and get the fire department here,” Hendrix said.

This is sad, I can understand being overweight, but no one should should allow themselves to get this big. Why do people do this to themselves? Anyways it is pretty ridiculous that we are having problems like this. we arrest people bc they abuse drugs but dont even throw an intervention for the morbidly obese. We should commit these people for attempted suicide.

a reply to: theyknowwhoyouare

i applaud you for your concern for people's health and well being. Many people don't care. Am I correct in thinking, from your words, that we should stop arresting people in the hopeless, costly, and unjust War on Drugs, and replace it with a War on Fat?

originally posted by: theyknowwhoyouare

We should commit these people for attempted suicide.

Obesity stats...

5% of Americans are morbidly obese. I don't think they will be rounded up anytime soon. Why not round up smokers too? Just not gonna happen.

If you would've penned that as a fat joke comedy routine I would have guiltily laughed and not wondered if you were a sociopath or suffer from Tourettes.

Revenge from beyond the grave! With an honorable shout out to McDonalds, Ben and Jerry's, Pepsico, and Dominos Pizza.

Imagine being the dude who was standing there, all business as usual, when things started to go so horribly, horribly wrong. I bet he's in therapy on a daily basis for awhile.

In the future we will hear of complaints for being charged double to be cremated, like we do on planes.
I cannot understand why people would want to get cremated, when you can just get buried instead.

a reply to: alexball

Burial is much more expensive. Aside from that, there are people who prefer the idea of immolation to that of entombment. I know several claustrophobics who want to be cremated because their biggest fear about death is spending eternity buried in a box.

Very sad indeed that people allow themselves to get that big that they can't even get cremated without blowing the place up. what a grand farewell. I feel really sorry for the person that was the witness to that, that would leave me deeply disturbed like forever.

originally posted by: alexball
In the future we will hear of complaints for being charged double to be cremated, like we do on planes.
I cannot understand why people would want to get cremated, when you can just get buried instead.

Cause I would have to come back and haunt anyone who spent money on a casket for me. Dispose of my body the cheapest way possible.

a reply to: alexball

They should, obviously, be charged double for burials as well.

I apologise if this sounds crass or gruesome - I say the following in all seriousness:

If there is such a large body to be cremated, would it be a good idea to burn the body in parts?

Less of a hazard that way.

500lb corpse causes grease fire at crematorium

The jokes this headline brings is just too much.

So this must mean that the fatter you get the water in your body must turn into grease?

I guess that weight wasn't from water retention, but grease retention.

Okay I'll stop before I go to far.

Just one more question...

I wonder if he smelled like french fries with all the grease burning...sorry I just couldn't resist.

a reply to: alexball

As over weight as this guy was, a normal coffin wouldn't work I don't think. They would have had to buy a special coffin to fit him and it would have cost a lot more money. So I guess either the family thought or he thought it would be best to be cremated.

originally posted by: Hefficide
a reply to: alexball

Burial is much more expensive. Aside from that, there are people who prefer the idea of immolation to that of entombment. I know several claustrophobics who want to be cremated because their biggest fear about death is spending eternity buried in a box.

add to this:
the cost of maintaining a plot is expensive. what happens when all the loved ones too are gone? when no one visits the grave anymore? honestly, i believe the bodies are dug up and what ever is left is cremated; and the plot is sold to a new client. i don't have any proof of this but to me it makes business sense. property is valuable.

This week's special - 1.99/pound

a reply to: subfab

Apparently this has been documented in at least one case.

But, then again, cremation can also end up as a scam.

I do think that once one puts on a huge amount of fat it gets impossible to exercise and all one can do is become stationery and eat. Also there is a mental factor involved which needs to be understood the depression of a fat person who use to be slim is not something to laugh at, rather 'there go I but for mgy metabolism'.

I don't think the health services should view treatments like lipo suction and other things to help reduce weight to the point that one can exercise and move freely as purely cosmetic. I think we need treatments to help people to loose a chunk of their body flab so they can deal with it.

Once you get to a stage that you can't control, they then is precious little you can do alone. Surely the cost of obesity as it starts up far outweighs the suggested treatments above, whether surgical or not, free of charge to help our people who can't afford to help themselves.

We need compassion and a vision of how to stop obesity - even if its a one'off go at free chunk removing - if you get my drift.

It shouldn't be forgotten that there are conditions that create weight gain such as thyroidism etc etc etc.

Obesity, drug use, teen pregnancy and every other cause du jour are symptoms of our cultural disease not our moral decay. When competition without morality, built in income inequality, and endless mindless consumption are the primary drivers of a culture how can we expect things to be magically awesome. The brainwashing goes so deep that no one questions the real cause.

I'm a smoker and slightly overweight (by reasonable standards not that bad, by american standards I might as well be 1000 lbs). I played sports all during childhood but got turned off completely in middle school when it stopped being about fun and started being about winning. I hated smoking and thought it the dumbest thing until the time right before college when I just gave in to the dominant culture and started partying and socializing to try to fit in with family and friends. It took me over ten years of #ing up left and right (by my standards, by American standards I was pretty tame, I'd never get viewers for my reality show :p ) before I found myself again.

Our entire culture is about suppressing anyone who questions it. If you suck at school that's fine, it's designed to be passed by anyone who can show obedience and a minimum of work. If you suck at sports, it's because your lazy and not trying hard enough. If you suck at being moral, no worries it's not necessary. If you suck at being greedy and materialistic then you must have some serious mental issues. If you're not classically attractive you should just give into being alone. If you are attractive don't worry about your personality, you'll always have a place as long as you're confident.

It's literally impossible to be happy if you follow American culture without building up a huge array of neuroses and mental illnesses. That's why even our most successful celebrities and businessman so often have as many issues as people with no success. When success is defined by constantly climbing up the ladder you'll never be happy because best case scenario at some point you reach the top and become bored and lose all sense of purpose and become unhappy. That's why so many men become depressed after retirement. Their entire purpose has been aquisition and competition and they have forgotten how to just relax and enjoy life. Sadly with feminism women are slowly catching up on that gender gap. If nothing changes America is doomed because nearly everyone is mentally ill. Even the so called normal people. I personally call buying tons of useless # while people starve and suffer mentally ill but I don't think many share my sentiment.

It's not being on the internet that causes all the hate online. It's our culture. The internet is just anonymous enough that most people will let their true selves out. It's no wonder we are the paragons of every deadly sin out there. Our culture is based entirely on the principles of Machiavelli. Winning takes precedent over caring. I learned this when my empathetic sister would come home crying nit for herself but for how poorly someone at school treated a legit retarded kid or some nerd or fatty.

I'll leave you with this story. When it first came out I remember reading tons of comments about how stupid this bitch was or how she deserved what she got. You'll have to take my word since most articles seem to have closed comments. I wonder why.

www.alternet.org...

originally posted by: alexball
In the future we will hear of complaints for being charged double to be cremated, like we do on planes.
I cannot understand why people would want to get cremated, when you can just get buried instead.

My dad passed away and we had him cremated. It was better than arguing over where to bury him since my mom no longer lives in our hometown. She also feels better having him with her.

It's a choice and I think it's a good one.

I plan on cremation. Both my husband and I will be. I told him that our daughter can put our ashes together in one urn and it would be romantic to be 'together' like that for eternity.

There is a company that can make stones out of human ashes. They put the ashes into some kind of high pressure machine and out pops gemstone like rocks. I think it would be awesome fun to have my husband and I together in one of those rocks and it can be passed down through the generations or something. Different and fun .... but too expensive to seriously do it. It's out of our budget.