A man from Charlotte, North Carolina, joined a boat off the state coast and witnessed how hundreds of unclaimed human remains were scattered, years after no one cared to ask for them. And while this appears to be a normal procedure, the internet took it as it normally does: completely horrified.
This nerve-wracking-for-some story was shared online by David Schuman. He is a reporter for Queen City News and often shares local stories that fit the label of “particular.” That was the case with the video attached above, which became one of his biggest by garnering 637,500 views, 49,000 likes, and more than 1,600 comments.
The North Carolina man explained what was happening on screen. He was on board a boat, and someone can be seen scattering ashes into the sea. He said that they were “saying a final goodbye to people who die with no one to claim them.”
The Atlantic: Final Resting Place
Apparently, once someone dies, families have a specific period of time to claim their remains. However, if for whatever reason families couldn’t or wouldn’t claim the remains, they would be turned over to the state. As a result, these are cremated, and ashes are stored for a period of three years.
After that time is up, it’s ocean-scattering time. The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner takes these abandoned ashes and transports them three miles off the coast of North Caroline. There, they are scattered in the Atlantic, which becomes their final resting place.
“I wanted to see this and cover this because I think it says something about how our society treats folks who have been largely forgotten and the respect we still show them,” David said.
His video showed boxes and boxed which contained even tinier ones that had bags filled with the aforementioned ashes. One by one, the remains of someone’s son, father, or grandmother met the sea in an almost ceremonious manner.
In total, 116 sets of ashes were scattered with David on board the boat.
Reactions
The video sparked multiple responses, and, as said above, many were from viewers who were horrified over the scattering of human remains. One said, “I gotta stop eating fish.” Another one commented, “Sooo I’m not swimming in the beach ever again.”
Others, meanwhile, were glad to see those unclaimed reaching their final resting place. One wrote, “May they rest in peace.” Finally, some even sighed a sigh of relief. A woman named Alexa said, “They wouldn’t let me have my mother-in-law. She passed 7 years ago, and it’s nice to know that she has a final resting place!“
Numbers shared by David showed that in 2025, around 900 people passed away with no one claiming their remains.
