🔗 Share this article

Families whose relatives laid to rest in resting places vulnerable to shoreline retreat argue that a lack of decision on how best to tackle the issue is causing them unnecessary distress about the eternal homes of their departed family.

An Impending Danger to Historic Graveyards

The council have identified three burial grounds in the communities of Happisburgh, Trimingham, and Mundesley as being in danger of being consumed by the ocean in the coming decades.

A recent report on the situation sets out a series of options, from doing nothing to exhuming remains and reburying them in safer locations. Authorities maintain it is for the community to determine how to move forward.

“Right now we’re in a state of uncertainty. It upsets me. My parents intended this to be their final resting place, but it isn’t going to be because of the sea.”

Estimates indicate at least a portion of one graveyard could be claimed by the sea in the next 80 years, but some locals worry it will happen much sooner. “I think it’s got under 20 years, if you consider what’s occurred in the last 30 years,” one said.

Haunted by the Ghosts of Eccles

One resident remembered a childhood visit to the neighbouring settlement of Eccles, which has almost entirely vanished into the sea, including its place of worship and burial ground.

“It was possible to see human remains,” she said. “Some have this romantic idea that the deceased will just get carried away to sea. That is not the case. People will collect remains as souvenirs and go grave robbing in search of valuables. It’s completely disrespectful.”

“I fear that the same thing that befell at Eccles will happen here and there’ll be skeletons on the beach. I’d be appalled by that.”

A Paratrooper's Grave in Peril

Further up the coast is situated the burial plot of a former paratrooper killed while working abroad. His parent expressed she could not sleep after discovering her son’s final plot might one day be moved.

“It truly trouble me to think this won’t be his permanent home,” she said. “For us it’s an significant site to visit.”

In her view, new interments should cease but says it is premature to exhume current plots. “My preference for now is to take no action and watch carefully, but an early decision must be made when a tipping point has been reached.”

Seeking Answers and Clarity

An absence of agreement over when and how to handle the challenge has resulted in grieving relatives feeling frustrated and anxious.

Some are calling for additional sea defences to slow the inevitable erosion and to allow funerals to proceed for now. Others argue the time for moving graves is drawing near.

“It is very emotional,” said one relative. “The council’s report was thorough, but now there’s uncertainty about how it is implemented. And everybody is washing their hands over who is responsible.”

A coastal manager said the burial sites were under the care of the local diocese. “Ultimately it is down to them to choose the path to take. We are here to help support them through that process with communities.”

He added there was ample time to weigh all the options. “This concerns many years before it starts to be lost.”

“There is no unified opinion on what should happen yet. It requires productive community discussions to discover the right answers for each community.”

The prospect of the loss of the churches and graveyards was described as one of “profound sadness for the local community,” but church representatives also spoke of a belief in resurrection, providing a spiritual perspective on the physical disappearance of sacred ground.