🔗 Share this article

Loved ones whose relatives laid to rest in resting places vulnerable to shoreline retreat argue that a lack of decision on how best to tackle the problem is causing them avoidable anguish about the final resting places of their departed family.

A Looming Danger to Ancient Graveyards

The council have identified three church graveyards in the communities of Happisburgh, Mundesley, and Trimingham as being in danger of being consumed by the ocean in the next few generations.

A recent report on the issue details a series of possible actions, from doing nothing to exhuming remains and relocating them in more secure locations. Officials say it is for local people to decide how to move forward.

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

Projections suggest at least part of one churchyard could be claimed by 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 happened in the last 30 years,” a farmer stated.

Troubled 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 church and graveyard.

“You could see human remains,” she said. “Some have this romantic idea that people’s remains will just get carried away to sea. They won’t. People will collect remains as mementos and go plundering graves in search of valuables. That is completely undignified.”

“I’m worried that the same thing that happened at Eccles will occur at Happisburgh and there’ll be skeletons on the shore. I’d be appalled by that.”

A Paratrooper's Resting Place in Jeopardy

Along the shoreline lies the grave of a ex-soldier killed while working overseas. His mother expressed she lost sleep after learning her child's final plot might one day be moved.

“It does trouble me to think this may not remain his permanent resting place,” she said. “For us it’s an important place to go.”

She believes, new interments should cease but says it is too soon to disturb existing graves. “What I would choose for now is to do nothing and watch carefully, but an timely resolution needs to be made when a tipping point has been reached.”

Searching for Answers and Clarity

The lack of agreement over when and how to tackle the problem has left grieving relatives feeling frustrated and anxious.

Some want additional sea defences to delay the inevitable erosion and to permit funerals to continue for now. Others argue the time for moving graves is approaching.

“It is very emotional,” said one relative. “The council’s report was really good, but now there’s uncertainty about how it is implemented. And all parties is avoiding responsibility over who is accountable.”

A coastal manager said the graveyards were under the care of the church authorities. “In the end it is up to them to choose the direction to take. We are here to help support them through that journey with communities.”

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

“There is no unified opinion on what should be done yet. We need good community discussions to discover the right answers for each village.”

The prospect of the loss of the churches and graveyards was labeled one of “immense sadness for the area,” but faith leaders also referenced a belief in life after death, providing a theological viewpoint on the temporal disappearance of hallowed earth.