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Families whose relatives laid to rest in graves at risk from coastal erosion state that indecision over how to address the problem is causing them unnecessary distress about the final resting places of their departed family.

An Impending Danger to Historic Graveyards

The council have singled out three burial grounds in the villages of Happisburgh, Trimingham, and Mundesley as being at risk of being consumed by the ocean in the coming decades.

A newly published study on the situation sets out a range of possible actions, from taking no action to disinterring bodies and reburying them in more secure locations. 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 intended this to serve as their final resting place, but it won't be because of the sea.”

Estimates indicate at least a portion of one churchyard could fall into the sea in the next 80 years, but some residents fear it will happen much sooner. “I think it’s got less than 20 years, if you look at what’s happened in the last 30 years,” a farmer stated.

Haunted by the Ghosts of Eccles

One resident recalled a childhood visit to the nearby settlement of Eccles, which has almost entirely vanished into the water, including its church and graveyard.

“You could see people’s bones,” she said. “Certain people hold this idealized notion that the deceased will just get washed out to the ocean. That is not the case. Individuals will take bones as mementos and go grave robbing looking for treasures. That is completely undignified.”

“I fear that the identical fate that happened at Eccles will occur here and there’ll be bones on the beach. I’d be disgusted by that.”

A Paratrooper's Resting Place in Jeopardy

Along the shoreline is situated the grave of a former paratrooper killed while serving abroad. His mother said she lost sleep after discovering her son’s grave might one day be moved.

“It does disturb me to think this won’t be his lasting home,” she said. “For us it’s an significant place to go.”

In her view, new burials should cease but says it is too soon to disturb existing graves. “My preference for now is to take no action and closely monitor, but an timely resolution must be made when a tipping point has been attained.”

Searching for Solutions and Certainty

The lack of consensus over when and how to tackle the problem has resulted in grieving relatives feeling exasperated and anxious.

Several families are calling for more coastal protections to slow the inevitable erosion and to permit burials to continue for now. Others contend the time for relocation is drawing near.

“It is very emotional,” said one relative. “The official study was really good, but now there’s confusion about how it is implemented. And all parties is washing their hands over who is accountable.”

A local official said the graveyards were owned and managed of the local diocese. “Ultimately it is down to them to choose the path to take. Our role is here to help support them through that process with residents.”

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

“Currently, there exists no unified opinion on what should be done yet. We need good local conversations to discover the right answers for each village.”

The possibility of losing the historic sites was labeled one of “immense sadness for the local community,” but faith leaders also spoke of a belief in resurrection, offering a spiritual perspective on the temporal loss of hallowed earth.