LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Recall policy for interment at a naval cemetery.

With two exceptions, MEDDEN Affairs exercises technical direction of naval plots and cemeteries. Presently, there are only a few active naval cemeteries, so plot availability is extremely limited. For this reason, decedents who are eligible for interment in national cemeteries will not normally be authorized interment in a naval plot or cemetery. However, exceptional or unusual circumstances will be referred to BUMED for determination.

GROUP INTERMENTS

LEARNING OBJECTIVE: Recall guidelines for group interments.

When remains of two or more individuals killed in the same incident cannot be individually identified, a priority message detailing the circumstances should be sent to MEDDENAffairs. MEDDENAffairs will then determine if there is a need for an identification specialist to be sent. If remains cannot be individually identified, the collective remains will be interred as a group interment. Group interments should be made in a national cemetery, within the 50 United States, as close to the midpoint of the two most widely separated homes of record of known deceased individuals involved, or as otherwise directed by the program managers. MEDDEN Affairs will coordinate with the other services as required. Procedures followed in group interments are:

1. Unidentified remains should be prepared, wrapped and placed into the minimum number of caskets possible without overcrowding. Partially segregated but identifiable remains should be wrapped separately.

2. One or more escorts should be provided, as long as the number of escorts does not exceed the number of deceased persons.

3. The PNOK and two blood relatives of each deceased member in a group interment are authorized round-trip transportation to the place of interment at government expense.

4. The ceremonies should be conducted with full military honors and be in accordance with the religious pReferences applicable to all denominations represented within the group. Photographs should be provided to the PNOK, if desired.

5. The headstone or headstones should be inscribed with the names of all known deceased personnel.

SUMMARY
The Decedent Affairs Program consists of the search, recovery, identification, care, and disposition of remains of deceased personnel for whom the Department of the Navy is responsible. Large medical treatment facilities normally manage decedent affairs mattes. However, when a death occurs at small independent operational units, senior Hospital Corpsmen will be responsible for the proper management of this program. For this reason, basic components of the Decedent Affairs Program were covered in this chapter. For further guidance, you should consult the Decedent Affairs Manual or contact the Naval office of Medical/Dental Affairs, Mortuary Affairs Section, Great Lakes, Illinois.