...and I thought a sharing a little info here might be of interest to WS'rs looking @ timelines and thinking about Casey conducting a shallow-grave disposal.
We lost a family pet yesterday
. So I went to the backyard to make preparations.
So...FWIW...here's what maybe relevant info:
- I live near the coast w/ sandy soil conditions reasonably comparible to Orlando area
- My backyard is sparsley wooded w/ pine trees
- I'm 42 y.o. male, 6' tall, 170 lbs. (for comparison to Casey's capabilities or time needed only)
- I'm in good physical condition, this was a good workout...full rolling sweat w/ no breaks
- I used a short-handled "ditch diggers" shovel (rounded to a point end)
- Dug a shallow grave that would accomodate a 30lb pet
- Final dimensions 2' x 3' x 2' deep
- Ideal weather conditions: 79F, sunny, low humidity, no mosquitos
- Took me exactly 30mins to dig the grave
- This 30mins does not include transporting to/from, refilling w/ soil, etc.
- Toughest physical challenge for Casey, IMHO, would be cutting through roots. I encountered several 3/4" diam. from pine trees and undergrowth. I got through these w/ the shovel, but, took real effort and persistance.
- After cutting through root layer, digging went quickly...hence, job would go much faster in non-wooded area
- Digging another 2' deeper (total 4' deep) would've taken another ~20minutes. Faster due to no roots and sandier soil. Slower if I could only use the short-handled shovel and had to dig from inside the hole vs. from above.
- OK, something obvious, that's still worth noting, IMHO...the occupant of a grave lays on the bottom, hence, a body thats, say, 8" thick will only be 16" below the surface of the filled grave. A 2' grave somehow looks deeper than 2' when you're standing above it.
Some other notes FWIW:
It was very wet in Orlando in June/July, IIRC, and water would be seeping/ponding into any hole being dug more than ~1' deep.
Having/knowing the right type of shovel to use is a make-or-break for this job. For example, a flat-tipped coal shovel would make cutting through roots virtually impossible. A long-spade shovel would've double-to-tripled the duration of the job since it moves less volume. Factor this in if a receipt ever surfaces w/ a shovel on it.