SPOKANE, Wash. — Right now, in Spokane County, there are 594 cases of unclaimed remains. There are more than 20 who have not yet been identified. It’s a last resort to officially fall in either category after all efforts by Medical Examiner staff have been exhausted.
“It is heartbreaking,” Spokane County Medical Examiner Dr. Veena Singh said. “In our work, we really see the people who fall through the cracks. (For some) in life, nobody cared and that sort of carries through in death.”
When someone who has passed away has no means to cover final expenses or no loved ones who can do so, it’s up to Spokane County to arrange for disposition.
“In the early 2000’s, we’d have 10 or so,” Dr. Singh said. “It went along like that for years, 10 to 15, and now it’s 40 to 50.”
Dr. Singh’s office works tirelessly and compassionately to name those rendered nameless and notify their loved ones. There is a master list of those cases prominently displace in their workplace, as well as their website.
“That big board up there is where we have the people who are not claimed,” Dr. Singh showed. “It’s common and it’s becoming more common.”
But the issue dates back decades. The hundreds of unclaimed remains cases date back to the early 1990’s.
Each listed with their date of birth, and death, as well as where their remains are currently housed.
“Unclaimed, the person may or may not have assets, may or may not family, but if they do have family, they are not coming forward to pay for arrangements,” Dr. Singh said.
The county works with an attorney on those cases to see if the deceased had any assets to cover that expense. In many cases, they don’t.
“Indigent really means that the person themselves dies without resources or any family to claim them,” Dr. Singh said. “They are alone in this word and without any resources to pay for disposition.”
The county is required to provided disposition to anyone found to be indigent.
“The county gives us $25,000 a year,” she said. “We’re lucky to have funeral homes that do it at cost for us.”
She’s talking about cremation, which typically can cost upward of $1,500. local funeral homes only charge the county about $600. Dr. Singh says they are very cautious with their budget and utilize other programs or resources when appropriate like the VA or even a crime victim’s fund. In those qualifying cases, the county can be reimbursed for final expenses.
“We try to be very mindful of this money,” Dr. Singh said. “Obviously, the pot is not unlimited. There are people who really, really need this. That’s their only option, this fund. So, we try really hard to only use it for those people.”
The timeline for cremation varies.
“The body stays here, that’s correct,” Dr. Singh said. “But at a certain point, we reach a dead end and move forward with cremation, but we keep the cremains here for several months.”
That’s in this secure facility. Then, once a year, Dr. Singh’s staff transports each set of cremains to Holy Cross. There is a brief ceremony and blessing before they find their final resting place. Dr. Singh always encourages any available staff to be present when this occurs.
“That is heavy,” she said. “It’s really a statement on our society on how we allocate resources to people and the efforts we make for them.”
Dr. Singh says her office never gives up trying to reunite loved ones with unclaimed remains and give a name to those who are yet to be identified. She encourages the community to continually review this public list.
