🔗 Share this article

Families of people buried in resting places vulnerable to shoreline retreat argue that a lack of decision on how best to address the problem is causing them unnecessary distress about the eternal homes of their departed family.

An Impending Danger to Historic Graveyards

Local authorities have identified three burial grounds in the villages of Happisburgh, Mundesley, and Trimingham as being at risk of being engulfed by the ocean in the next few generations.

A recent report on the issue details a series of possible actions, from taking no action to exhuming remains and reburying them in more secure sites. Officials say it is for the community to decide how to move forward.

“At the moment we’re in a state of uncertainty. It upsets me. They intended this to be their last home, but it isn’t going to be because of the encroaching sea.”

Estimates indicate at least part of one graveyard could be claimed by the waves in the next 80 years, but some residents worry it will happen far earlier. “In my view it’s got less than 20 years, if you consider what’s occurred in the last 30 years,” one said.

Haunted by the Ghosts of Eccles

A local business owner recalled a school trip to the nearby settlement of Eccles, which has largely vanished into the sea, including its church and graveyard.

“It was possible to see human remains,” she said. “Some have this romantic idea that people’s remains will just get carried away to the ocean. That is not the case. Individuals will collect remains as souvenirs and go grave robbing looking for treasures. It’s completely undignified.”

“I’m worried that the identical fate that happened at Eccles will occur here and there’ll be skeletons on the shore. I’d be disgusted by that.”

A Paratrooper's Grave in Jeopardy

Along the coast lies the burial plot of a former paratrooper who died while serving abroad. His mother expressed she could not sleep after discovering her child's grave might one day be moved.

“It truly trouble me to consider this won’t be his permanent home,” she said. “To our family it’s an important place to go.”

In her view, new interments should cease but says it is too soon to disturb current plots. “My preference for now is to take no action and closely monitor, but an early decision needs to be made when a critical moment has been reached.”

Seeking Solutions and Clarity

The lack of consensus over the timing and method to handle the problem has resulted in bereaved families feeling exasperated and worried.

Several families want additional coastal protections to delay the inevitable erosion and to allow burials to proceed for now. Different voices contend the moment for relocation is drawing near.

“It is very emotional,” a family member stated. “The official study was thorough, but now there’s confusion about how it is implemented. And all parties is avoiding responsibility over who is accountable.”

A coastal manager confirmed the burial sites were owned and managed of the local diocese. “In the end it is up to them to choose the path to take. Our role is here to assist them through that journey with communities.”

It was also stated there was ample time to weigh all the options. “We are talking many years before it starts to be lost.”

“There is no common view on what should happen yet. We need good community discussions to find the appropriate answers for each village.”

The possibility of losing the churches and graveyards was labeled one of “immense sorrow for the area,” but church representatives also referenced a belief in life after death, providing a spiritual viewpoint on the temporal loss of hallowed earth.