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Families of people buried in graves vulnerable to coastal erosion argue that a lack of decision over how to tackle the problem is creating avoidable anguish about the final resting places of their departed family.

A Looming Threat to Historic Graveyards

The council have identified three burial grounds in the communities of Happisburgh, Mundesley, and Trimingham as being in danger of being engulfed by the ocean in the next few generations.

A newly published study on the situation sets out a range of possible actions, from taking no action to exhuming remains and reburying them in more secure sites. Authorities say it is for local people to decide how to move forward.

“Right now we’re in limbo. It upsets me. They intended this to be their last home, but it won't be because of the encroaching sea.”

Projections indicate at least a portion of one graveyard could be claimed by the waves in the next 80 years, but some locals worry it will happen much sooner. “In my view it’s got under 20 years, if you look at what’s happened in the last 30 years,” a farmer stated.

Troubled by the Past

A local business owner remembered a school trip to the nearby settlement of Eccles, which has almost entirely vanished into the sea, including its church and graveyard.

“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 sea. They won’t. 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 happened at Eccles will happen here and there’ll be skeletons on the shore. I would feel disgusted by that.”

A Paratrooper's Grave in Peril

Further up the shoreline is situated the burial plot of a ex-soldier killed while serving overseas. His mother said she could not sleep after learning her son’s final plot might one day be moved.

“It truly trouble me to consider this won’t be his lasting resting place,” she said. “For us it’s an significant place to go.”

She believes, new burials should stop but says it is premature to exhume existing graves. “My preference for now is to do nothing and watch carefully, but an timely resolution must be made when a tipping point has been attained.”

Seeking Solutions and Clarity

An absence of consensus over the timing and method to tackle the challenge has left grieving relatives feeling frustrated and anxious.

Several families want more coastal protections to slow the unavoidable loss and to permit funerals to continue for now. Different voices contend the moment for relocation is approaching.

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

A local official confirmed the burial sites were owned and managed of the local diocese. “Ultimately it is up to them to choose the direction 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 common view on what should happen yet. We need good community discussions to discover the right answers for each community.”

The possibility of losing the historic sites was described as one of “immense sadness for the local community,” but church representatives also referenced a belief in resurrection, providing a spiritual viewpoint on the physical loss of sacred ground.