MIDDLETOWN, R.I. – The Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence says it's reminding cemetery employees about the proper way to dispose of an American flag after more than a dozen flags were discovered in a trash bin at a Middletown cemetery.
Virginia DelNero told The Newport Daily News that and her husband were at St. Columba Cemetery on Saturday and noticed flags were missing from many veterans' graves. She said they found them in a trash bin.
American flags are supposed to be disposed of by burning.
The diocese says it regrets the incident, and that it follows a strict protocol to dispose of flags properly. It says it has a number of younger workers during summer months who might not have been informed of how best to dispose of a flag.
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