A Northumberland mum was "completely disgusted" to find her father's last resting place covered by a mound of dirt, with family flowers and tributes slung to one side.
Tony Gray, from Stakeford, died at the age of 60 in January last year. The Argus Powerbend worker was killed by Covid-19, after a number of employees at the Sunderland-based plant tested positive for the virus.
This weekend, Tony's grieving daughter Gemma had been planning to pay her respects at her dad's graveside at West Sleekburn Cemetery, along with her son Riley, nine. But a call on Saturday from a friend who has a loved one buried nearby warned her his grave was in a "shocking" state.
Read more: Daughters fight suicide 'stigma' in memory of mum who was 'so much more than her demons'
The 35-year-old, from Blyth, said: "I was really shocked. I went there to have a look and, basically, they've dug another grave next to him and pilled all that earth over his grave.
"All the little gifts and things on there were just chucked in a bush. Nobody had informed us anything like this was going to happen. I tried contacting the church and later on the vicar rang and his attitude was pretty much 'that's what we do.'
"I explained I was completely disgusted, especially in a churchyard, that they would have complete disregard and be so disrespectful of somebody's resting place."
A "typical Geordie guy", much-loved granddad Tony was "old-school" and "a real character". For mum-of-two Gemma, the graveside has become an important place to think of him, after the shock of his sudden death in the middle of pandemic restrictions.
She added: "It was such a shock when my dad died, because he had literally only just caught Covid and then a few days later that was it. It was really hard because obviously Covid was rife then and all the restrictions were in place, so we were only allowed to have a service with 30 people and then a graveside burial.
"I go down there often with my children to see him. It's just so upsetting, it's not something you expect - in a way I'm glad someone else saw it first, so at least me and my son hadn't gone to see granddad and been greeted with that.
"I don't know which is worse: piling the earth on top of the grave or someone physically removing everything that was left there and slinging it to the side as if it was nothing, as if it was just rubbish.
"It was really distressing for both myself and my son. It was an awful few days after seeing him covered as if he didn't exist. I just hope no-one else has to experience what I did when going to visit one of their loved ones."
The Church of England cemetery forms part of St Paul the Apostle Church, in the Parish of Choppington. A spokesperson for the Diocese of Newcastle said: “The vicar of St Paul’s has spoken with Gemma and appreciates the upset this must have caused. Space in the churchyard is extremely limited and when soil is removed for a new grave, extreme care is always taken to protect existing graves nearby.
"Those tasked with the digging of graves will place protective boards on the ground to protect any graves underneath. This was the case with the grave of Gemma’s dad and everything was respectfully put back in place immediately afterwards.”
Gemma confirmed that the earth had been removed on Monday, but said the items hadn't been put back "neatly" and said it had taken her "over an hour" to return everything on her dad's grave to the way it had been before.
