SEABROOK, N.H. (AP) – The crematorium where a week-old corpse was decomposing apparently used a Dumpster to dispose of pacemakers, replacement hips and other objects, a prosecutor said Thursday.

In addition to the body of the unidentified woman, investigators searching the Bayview Crematorium found the remains “of more than one person” in a single oven after it cooled down Wednesday, Rockingham County Attorney Jim Reams said at a news conference.

“There’s nothing in New Hampshire law that forbids that, but the ethics and morality of that are appalling at best,” Reams said.

Reams said state regulation of crematoriums is so weak he wouldn’t be surprised if Bayview was not an isolated case in being able to operate unlicensed and uninspected for six years.

“Given the manner in which the licensing of these institutions occurred, there’s no reason to think there aren’t others,” he said.

As Reams and other officials were speaking in Seabrook, Gov. John Lynch announced that a special task force would start studying state regulation of crematoriums beginning on Friday.

“Families coping with the loss of a loved one should know that their family members will be treated with respect and dignity,” said Lynch, who took office last month. He said he is “deeply disturbed.”

Authorities heard about Bayview while interviewing funeral home employees in an investigation of a county medical examiner. When police were turned away last week, prosecutors got a search warrant.

Reams said officials were told the business owner was vacationing in Florida before they searched the crematorium Wednesday. Reams said he plans to file misdemeanor charges.

He said the medical examiner was beginning to assemble information needed to identify the woman, who apparently was in her 50s. If officials were unable to identify her through other means a full autopsy would be conducted, Reams said.

He said a medical examiner estimated the woman had been dead for seven to 10 days when her body was found in a broken cooler. The temperature inside was 78 degrees, Reams said.

The state Department of Health and Human Services is required to inspect and license crematoriums.

Reams said the department has authority to issue detailed rules, but, “as we stand here today, none of those rules have been issued.”

Asked if the department should shoulder at least partial blame for the situation, he said, “I think clearly they have to.”

Spokesman Greg Moore said the department had no record of plans for the crematorium or an application for inspection. He said the department needs to do a better job communicating with crematoriums – and the towns in which they are located – to ensure they comply with state law.

Moore said the department plans to work with the Legislature on rules governing crematoriums.

Reams said investigators believe Bayview had done more than 1,000 cremations during its years of operation.

Seabrook is on the Massachusetts border. Two years ago, some funeral directors told The Boston Globe that Bayview stood out because its low prices included pickup and delivery services from funeral homes, which most crematoriums do not provide. At least two directors said they had reservations because the service shielded the operation from scrutiny by the homes.

Bob Biggins, owner of the Magoun-Biggins Funeral Home in Rockland, Mass., said Thursday he was “shocked and appalled” by news about Bayview.

“A sacred trust has been violated,” said Biggins, who said his funeral home did not use Bayview.

Besides the remains found inside the crematorium oven Wednesday, Reams said officials had “no ability” to determine whether other remains had been mingled at the crematorium.

“We cannot assure the public that the remains they received from this institution were the remains of their loved ones,” he said.