For a crematorium worker, COVID-19 s mounting toll is measured in ashes and anguish stripes.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from stripes.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
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Diego Pablo had trained the young man in the craft of burning human bodies down to ash.
Inside the crematorium, 44-year-old Pablo watched as his protege prepared to push the rose-covered cardboard coffin into the furnace’s yawning mouth.
“What’s next?” Pablo asked, a gentle reminder to the 23-year-old who towered over him that something was missing.
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Tristen McBride, who wore a blue coat that fell above his jean-clad knees, snapped his fingers. He had forgotten the roller used to ease the box into the cremation chamber. It was only his third night shift in the crematory at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.