Beloved Elephant Buried in Local Dump

Citizens and officials outraged…

     by Dixie A. Walter

      November 26, 2002

     Thousands of people in the Pacific Northwest and in zoos across the nation mourn the untimely death of one captive elephant. Cindy, an Asian elephant, was 40 years old when she was euthanized Nov. 19 at Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium (PDZA) in Tacoma. She had been one of the zoo's most prominent stars since her arrival in 1965 as a three-year-old. Asian elephants can live 60 to 70 years, and are listed as an endangered species under the Endangered Species Act.
     Thousands of people were aghast Monday, Nov. 25 to learn the partial remains of this beloved animal were buried in the nearby dump (LRI Landfill) in Graham. Cindy now lies under tons of dirt and garbage. Zoo officials said they had a contract with QAR Dead Animal Removal in Graham to take the huge animal's corpse to a rendering plant, Baker Commodities, in Seattle.
     Today, grieving John Houck, deputy director of PDZA said zoo staff were just coming to grips with her death when they learned where, and how, she had been buried.  Houck explained that zoo officials were as stunned and upset as the public when the truth was uncovered. Area residents were deeply shaken by rumors that Cindy's head, feet and tail had been removed before her ignoble burial. Houck said, "That is absolutely true." According to the deputy director, one foot went to Oregon for a "free" MRI of the anklebone. One leg with the "humorus and femur bones" was sent to "another research facility" in the United States.
     One leg and Cindy's head have been kept at the zoo where they will be used as "skeleton" educational tools. The elephant's tail will also be used for education purposes. One foot was kept at the zoo so veterinarian Dr. Holly Reed can conduct more research. Cindy had arthritis and was euthanized after zoo personnel discovered the enormous animal could no long stand. A necropsy (non-human autopsy) showed Cindy's joints were badly damaged by the disease. 
     On an unsentimental note, area residents were also deeply shaken to learn an 8,000-pound animal has been buried in the dump which is over a sole source aquifer. George Wearn, president of CROWD (Concerned Residents On Waste Disposal), is deeply apprehensive about the hazards posed by adding 8,000 pounds of decomposing elephant to the dump. This knowledge has set off alarms with local residents and CROWD who have been fighting the dump for over a decade. 
     No one ever imagined the site would become an elephant burial ground. Wearn said, "If the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department doesn't know about the dead animals being dumped at the 304th Street landfill on a regular basis, it might also follow they don't know about, or chose to ignore, many other inappropriate shipments of waste. Someone reported to CROWD about a year ago that sheep were dumped in the landfill, some of which were still alive." He added, "CROWD is concerned that truckloads of animal carcasses are dumped at LRI's landfill on a regular basis, with little or no involvement by the Health Department. Cindy's inappropriate burial is a hint of a much larger problem. 'Locked-out' garbage drivers have reported seeing daily trucks from QAR Dead Animal Removal filled with dead horses and cows, hooves sticking up in the air." 
    Long-time State Senator Marilyn Rasmussen is also alarmed. She said, "It breaks my heart to hear about Cindy's death." However, she is equally disturbed by four tons of dead animal buried in the dump. Rasmussen has been a staunch supporter of all efforts to ban the dump. Along with Wearn; she is investigating this latest outrage.
     Cindy's death and "burial" overshadowed the arrival of two polar bears at the zoo. The bears, about 18 years old, were rescued from a "Mexico-based circus in Puerto Rico," and arrived at the zoo the night Cindy was put down. For more information about the bears and Cindy please see www.PDZA.org

"Pity the poor kids who grow up in a big city. They miss the little things that made growing up in a small town, ah, so wonderful."
~Tom Morrow