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Families whose relatives buried in graves vulnerable to coastal erosion say that a lack of decision on how best to tackle the issue is creating avoidable anguish concerning the eternal homes of their departed family.

An Impending Danger to Historic Graveyards

Local authorities have identified three church graveyards in the villages of Happisburgh, Mundesley, and Trimingham as being at risk of being swallowed by the sea in the next few generations.

A newly published study on the issue sets out a series of possible actions, from doing nothing to disinterring bodies and reburying them in more secure sites. Authorities say it is for the community to decide how to proceed.

“At the moment we’re in a state of uncertainty. It causes me distress. They wanted this to be their final resting place, but it isn’t going to be because of the sea.”

Estimates suggest at least part of one graveyard could fall into the waves in the next 80 years, but some residents fear it will happen far earlier. “I think it’s got under 20 years, if you consider what’s happened in the last 30 years,” one said.

Haunted by the Ghosts of Eccles

One resident remembered a childhood visit to the nearby settlement of Eccles, which has almost entirely vanished into the water, along with its place of worship and burial ground.

“You could see human remains,” she said. “Certain people hold this idealized notion that people’s remains will just get carried away to sea. That is not the case. People will collect remains as mementos and go grave robbing looking for valuables. It’s completely disrespectful.”

“I fear that the same thing that befell at Eccles will occur at Happisburgh and there’ll be skeletons on the beach. I’d be disgusted by that.”

A Soldier's Resting Place in Jeopardy

Along the shoreline lies the burial plot of a ex-soldier who died while serving abroad. His parent said she could not sleep after learning her child's final plot might one day be relocated.

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

She believes, new burials should cease but says it is premature to exhume current plots. “What I would choose for now is to take no action and closely monitor, but an early decision must be made when a critical moment has been reached.”

Searching for Answers and Clarity

The lack of consensus over the timing and method to handle the problem has resulted in grieving relatives feeling exasperated and anxious.

Several families are calling for more sea defences to delay the inevitable erosion and to allow burials to proceed for now. Others argue the time for relocation is drawing near.

“It is very emotional,” said one relative. “The official study was really good, but now there’s uncertainty about how it is taken forward. And all parties is avoiding responsibility over who is responsible.”

A coastal manager said the burial sites were owned and managed of the church authorities. “In the end it is down to them to choose the path to take. Our role is here to assist them through that process with communities.”

It was also stated there was time to consider all the options. “This concerns decades before it begins getting lost.”

“Currently, there exists no unified opinion on what should be done yet. It requires good community discussions to find the appropriate solutions for each community.”

The possibility of losing the historic sites was labeled one of “profound sadness for the area,” but faith leaders also referenced a doctrine in life after death, offering a theological viewpoint on the temporal disappearance of sacred ground.