The first mass graves could be dug in the UK to cope with a rise in bodies due to the coronavirus. Aberdeenshire Council is considering making them capable of holding hundreds of coffins as part of measures to deal with the Covid-19.
The planning covers Scotland's north east coast after local council bosses said cremation and burial services could be overwhelmed.
Latest figures from National Records Scotland show that only 99 people have died in the region from coronavirus with 3,213 dying in Scotland.
Philip McKay, head of roads, landscapes and waste services at the council at a virtual council meeting that initially the region's funeral industry looked bleak from initial forecasts.