In a previous post, we shared with you news of mishandling at Arlington Cemetery, where a military investigation discovered some irregularities which included the burying of cremated remains in the wrong gravesites. A more recent news item on the Navy Times shares the worried reactions of the families of the heroes who have been laid to rest at Arlington – a reaction that is completely expected and understandable.

Margaret Timmons, whose husband Navy Senior Petty Officer Jerome Timmons is buried in Section 66 near the corner of Bradley and MacArthur drives, shared: “I am really shocked. This is the most prestigious cemetery in the world. I just can’t believe they let this happen.” Section 66 is one of the cemetery areas where the Army was able to discover misidentified or improperly buried remains.

Margaret intends to be buried with her husband, and their daughter Megan has called cemetery officials to confirm whether it was, indeed, her father who was buried under the gravestone, and she said: “It’s a little unnerving or unsettling to think you can be buried with someone you think is your spouse but may not be due to what they refer to as mishap.”

As of Sunday, Navy spokeswoman Kaitlin Horst said that Arlington has received more than five hundred calls from family members voicing concerns about their loved ones who are buried in the cemetery.

The reason behind the inaccuracies is being blamed on a rather antiquated record-keeping system, especially in this day and age. Apparently, the cemetery still uses handwritten 3×5 index cards for tracking the graves of the more than 330,000 service members interred there.