STURGIS, S.D. (AP) - The Black Hills National Cemetery will increase by 13 acres to provide more burial room for veterans, their spouses and eligible dependents.
Cemetery director William T. Haggerty Jr. says that the expansion will place 4,000 double crypts into the ground at depths of seven feet.
He says workers need to dig only 18 inches of dirt when the plot is needed once the crypts are in place.
Haggerty says that should accommodate cemetery needs for about 15 years.
This cemetery is the final resting place for veterans spanning from the Indian War era to the Iraq-Afghanistan period.
With the expansion, Black Hills National Cemetery will have 102 acres including the trees and roads. Total burial numbers are slightly less than 24,000.
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AP-WF-06-09-12 1310GMT
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