FLINTSHIRE Council has explained what caused a grave to be dug up at a local cemetery.

Onlookers were left shocked on Monday when a grave appeared to have been left half dug up at Buckley Cemetery - with what appeared to be a casket left on view.

Members of the public said it was "shocking" to see and contacted the council to notify the authority - which is said to have sent contractors to the cemetery "within half an hour" of being contacted.

A member of the public told the Leader: "We were in the area when my seven-year-old granddaughter turned to me and said 'there’s a coffin sticking out of the ground'.

"I couldn't really believe my eyes, it was almost a bit surreal. It was very, very bizarre to see."

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Shedding light on the matter, Flintshire Council said heavy rain over the weekend caused the cemetery to become waterlogged.

The authority said the ground conditions subsequently caused an empty plastic Grave Liner placed in a grave for a future interment to rise to the surface, lifting approximately two tonnes of soil that had been placed on top of it.

A grave liner is defined as a burial receptacle placed in the ground in a cemetery, either sectional, dome or box form designed and built to support the weight of the earth and standard cemetery maintenance equipment and to prevent the grave from collapsing.

Steve Jones, Flintshire Council's chief officer for Streetscene and transportation, said: “We were alerted to an incident in Buckley Cemetery yesterday (Monday) afternoon.

“Operatives reacted quickly to rectify the situation by removing the empty liner and pumping out the water from the grave which has now been backfilled.

"At no stage were any remains disturbed or removed and we are making every effort to contact the family to explain what has happened.”