Asbury Cemetery Fire WFIE Channel 14 Evansville Ind. Sept 17 1999. Picture of damage cemetery available at this website. http://www.msnbc.com/local/wfie/153749.asp The brush fire scorched more than 600-acres and tore right through Asbury Cemetery. Now that the smoke has cleared, you can see that the damage is fairly minimal. The fire left behind some smoke darkened stones and no vegetation. It’s mainly the older markers, made of limestone that are damaged. Charlie Scherer works at Majestic Memorials. He explained, “The limestone is porous and it will take the smoke quicker than your polish. There’s a reason for it, And the heat may have cracked some of them too.” There’s also a reason some of the markers are virtually untouched. Even some of the flowers remain. It’s a process done to make mowing the lawn easier that also saved the stones from the flames. “On some of the stones they have what we call slab, a concrete slab. It comes out so they can cut the grass, so grass doesn’t grow right up against it. That’s the reason the fire didn’t touch some of them. It stopped right there at the concrete is what it done,” Scherer explained. There is hope. Scherer says the charred vegetation will grow back naturally. As for sandblasting and cleaning the stones that need it, that will take time. “Probably to clean the whole cemetery you’re looking at a couple months at least to do it properly,” he said. It will also take money. Scherer said, “Probably several thousand dollars you’re looking at.” Six years ago, vandals wrecked the Asbury Cemetery. The community pulled together to volunteer time and materials to fix it. It will take the same effort to get the cemetery back to normal this time. Dry conditions have forced Indiana Governor Frank O’Bannon to impose an emergency ban on open burning in 38 Hoosier counties to help cut down on the fire danger. These counties include all of southwestern Indiana. With the ban, no campfires are allowed. Brush, leaf, and trash fires are also forbidden. Smokers shouldn’t flick ashes or cigarettes out of car windows. Violators of this executive order could face a $500 dollar fine and up to 50 days in jail. ================================================ Tamara's Kincaid/Vincent/Gish Genealogy http://www.angelfire.com/in/tamaraspage/index.html Cemetery Inscriptions of Ky & Ind Many Surnames Leave a message in the Warrick Co Ind Cemetery Forum http://www.angelfire.com/in/tamaraspage/page8.html Warrick Co Ind Mystery Photo's http://www.angelfire.com/in/tamaraspage/page29.html