Delaware County company steps up to help protect Collingdale cemetery from flooding

The flooded and mud-soaked rows of graves and final resting places were distressing to families who visit their late loved ones at Mount Zion Cemetery in Collingdale, Pennsylvania.

It seemed everyone in town knew about the cemetery's problem of taking on water, but few thought there was anything that could be done. 

Steve Schultz of the Brookhaven firm Blue Sky Strategic Partners is taking on the problem.

"I saw your news article," he said in an interview at the cemetery. "And I wondered if we could do anything, if we could help."

His company, specializing in emergency services training and risk assessment, flagged where the cemetery keeps flooding. 

Small pink markers show a drastic fluctuation in the flooding. Those visiting loved ones have been upset by the scene, including one woman who lit a fire under Schultz.

"She just looked me dead in the eyes and said, 'Somebody has to do something,' and I said, yeah, that's it," he recalled.

At least a dozen graves are inundated. Schultz says it's personal: His father is buried in a section that does not flood.

Since the first CBS News Philadelphia report last month, we've learned the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection is advising that applications be made for emergency permits so the problem can be addressed quickly.

"People are supposed to rest here in eternal peace," Schultz said. "It's our job to bring that back."

They'll first pump out the water, then realign a large pipe that carries a small tributary of the Darby Creek. It was displaced in a 2019 storm.

"It's very complicated," Schultz added. "It involves engineering, grave stabilization."

Mount Zion Cemetery owner Joe Barbine said they do maintain perpetual care, but the cost to fix the pipe and stop the flooding is too expensive. He said back in 2019, numerous officials offered help.

"They made all these promises, the one girl said I can get a grant for this," he recalled.

But, he said, no grants were ever awarded. 

"They didn't even call us back."

Long-term funding is needed. Blue Sky is looking for partners to share the cost. Barbine said because of CBS News Philadelphia's reporting, this is the most progress Mount Zion has seen. Work, with proper funding, could take a couple of years.

"It's amazing that somebody would just come in today's world, you don't see that," Barbine said. "This guy came to me out of nowhere to help me."