A Step-by-Step Guide on How the Cremation Process Plays Out

Now that the cremation rate has risen dramatically in recent years, most people are at least vaguely familiar with what cremation is and how it works. But not everyone understands the cremation process and what it entails. If you fall into this category, you should learn about this process prior to choosing to cremate a loved one. It’ll ensure that you know what’s happening throughout your loved one’s cremation services in Erie, PA. Here is a step-by-step guide on how the cremation process plays out.

Step 1: A person’s body is identified properly.

Before an Erie, PA cremation can take place, it’s obviously very important for a funeral home to make sure that they’re going to be cremating the right person. It’s why most funeral homes double and triple check that a person is who they’re supposed to be prior to cremating them. They’ll also seek to get permission from a person’s family before carrying out a cremation. This is all designed to prevent a funeral home from cremating the wrong person’s body at any point.

Step 2: A person’s body is put into a cremation container.

Once a person’s body has been identified properly, it’ll then be placed into a cremation container. This cremation container is often a very simple box that will be cremated along with a person’s body once their cremation begins. But the container can also be a casket if a family would like for it to be. Whatever the case, it’ll need to be made out of wood so that it doesn’t take too long for it to be cremated.

Step 3: A person’s body is moved to a cremation chamber and cremated.

After a person’s body is put into a cremation container, it’ll be moved into a cremation chamber so that the person’s cremation can actually begin. Despite what many people might have heard, there isn’t any fire that is used during cremation. Instead, the cremation chamber is heated up to somewhere between 1,400 and 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit. The heat that a person’s body is subjected to is what helps a cremation to play out. Their body will be left in a cremation chamber for upwards of 2 hours.

Step 4: A person’s remains are processed.

When a cremation is complete, all that will remain of a person will be a pile of bone fragments. A funeral home will take these fragments and process them in order to turn them into the cremated remains that so many people have seen. They’ll also use heavy-duty magnets to remove any metals from these remains.

Step 5: A person’s remains are given back to their family.

At the end of all this, a funeral home will take a person’s remains and give them back to their family. In some cases, these remains will be put into an urn, while in others, they’ll be placed into a simple cardboard container. A family can then choose whether to take the remains home, bury them, scatter them, or do something else with them entirely. The cremation process will officially be complete.

Do you have more questions about the cremation process? Burton Quinn-Scott Cremation & Funeral Services would be happy to answer them for you when you visit our Erie, PA funeral home. Give us a call today to schedule a sit-down meeting with one of our trusted funeral directors.

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