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Loved ones of people laid to rest in resting places at risk from coastal erosion argue that indecision over how to tackle the problem is creating unnecessary distress about the final resting places of their loved ones.

An Impending Threat to Historic Graveyards

The council have identified three church graveyards in the villages of Happisburgh, Mundesley, and Trimingham as being in danger of being swallowed by the sea in the next few generations.

A recent report on the situation details a range of options, from taking no action to disinterring bodies and relocating them in safer sites. Officials say it is for the community to decide how to move forward.

“Right now we’re in a state of uncertainty. It causes me distress. They wanted this to be their last home, but it won't be because of the sea.”

Estimates indicate at least part of one churchyard could fall into the waves in the next 80 years, but some locals fear it will happen far earlier. “I think it’s got less than 20 years, if you look at what’s occurred in the last 30 years,” one said.

Haunted by the Ghosts of Eccles

A local business owner remembered a school trip to the neighbouring village of Eccles, which has almost entirely vanished into the water, along with its place of worship and burial ground.

“It was possible to see people’s bones,” she said. “Certain people hold this idealized notion that people’s remains will just get washed out to the ocean. They won’t. People will take bones as souvenirs and go plundering graves in search of treasures. That is completely disrespectful.”

“I fear that the identical fate that happened at Eccles will happen at Happisburgh and there’ll be skeletons on the beach. I would feel disgusted by that.”

A Paratrooper's Resting Place in Jeopardy

Along the coast is situated the burial plot of a ex-soldier who died while serving overseas. His mother expressed she could not sleep after discovering her son’s grave might one day be relocated.

“It truly disturb me to consider this may not remain his lasting resting place,” she said. “For us it’s an significant place to go.”

In her view, new interments should stop but says it is too soon to disturb 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 Solutions and Certainty

An absence of consensus over the timing and method to handle the problem has resulted in grieving relatives feeling frustrated and anxious.

Some are calling for more coastal protections to slow the unavoidable loss and to allow burials to continue for now. Others argue the time for relocation is drawing near.

“It is very emotional,” a family member stated. “The council’s report was really good, but now there’s confusion about how it is taken forward. And all parties is avoiding responsibility over who is responsible.”

A coastal manager said the burial sites were under the care of the local diocese. “Ultimately it is up to them to choose the path to take. Our role is here to assist them through that journey with residents.”

It was also stated there was ample time to consider all the choices. “We are talking decades before it begins getting lost.”

“Currently, there exists no unified opinion on what should be done yet. We need productive local conversations to find the appropriate solutions for each community.”

The possibility of the loss of the churches and graveyards was labeled one of “immense sorrow for the local community,” but church representatives also spoke of a belief in resurrection, offering a theological perspective on the physical disappearance of hallowed earth.