Human bones wash out of Fife graveyard in flood

The wall collapsed at Largo and Newburn churchyard after torrential rain on Saturday

Human bones have been washed into a Fife street after a graveyard flooded.

Heavy rain on Saturday caused a wall to collapse at Largo and Newburn churchyard in Upper Largo causing some historic lairs to be exposed.

Fife Council said it had recovered the remains and had stored them inside the church until the graves were restored.

The council said the remains would be respectfully returned to the ground at a later date once the graves had been rebuilt.

The church dates back to 1160.

'Ancient lairs'

Liz Murphy, head of bereavement services, said the wall collapsed at the historic churchyard on Saturday morning.

She said: "Approximately nine metres of the wall have collapsed. In turn, the churchyard and church remain closed to the public to ensure their safety whilst the incident is fully investigated.

"Unfortunately, some historic graves were disturbed and exposed.

"In order to preserve the dignity of the deceased, where safe, the remains have been moved into the church. Any exposed ancient lairs are covered until it is safe to restore or rebury them."

The council said it was committed to maintaining its graveyards and had a rolling inspection and maintenance programme in place.