🔗 Share this article

Families whose relatives buried in resting places at risk from coastal erosion say that indecision on how best to address the issue is causing them unnecessary distress concerning the final resting places of their departed family.

An Impending Danger to Ancient Churchyards

Local authorities have singled out three church graveyards in the communities of Happisburgh, Mundesley, and Trimingham as being at risk of being consumed by the ocean in the coming decades.

A newly published study on the issue sets out a series of options, from taking no action to disinterring bodies and relocating them in more secure locations. Authorities say it is for the community to determine how to proceed.

“At the moment we’re in limbo. It upsets me. They intended this to be their last home, but it isn’t going to be because of the encroaching sea.”

Estimates indicate at least a portion of one churchyard 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 consider what’s occurred in the last 30 years,” one said.

Troubled by the Past

A local business owner recalled a childhood visit to the neighbouring village of Eccles, which has largely disappeared into the water, including its place of worship and burial ground.

“It was possible to see human remains,” she said. “Some have this idealized notion that the deceased will just get washed out to the ocean. That is not the case. People will collect remains as souvenirs and go plundering graves looking for treasures. That is completely undignified.”

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

A Soldier's Resting Place in Peril

Along the coast lies the burial plot of a ex-soldier who died while serving overseas. His mother expressed she lost sleep after learning her child's final plot might one day be relocated.

“It truly disturb me to think this may not remain his permanent resting place,” she said. “For us it’s an important site to visit.”

She believes, new interments should cease but says it is premature to exhume current plots. “My preference for now is to do nothing and watch carefully, but an early decision must be made when a tipping point has been reached.”

Searching for Answers and Certainty

An absence of consensus over when and how to handle the problem has left bereaved families feeling frustrated and anxious.

Several families want additional sea defences to slow the inevitable erosion and to allow burials to proceed for now. Others argue the time for moving graves is drawing near.

“It is very emotive,” said one relative. “The council’s report was thorough, but now there’s uncertainty about how it is implemented. And all parties is washing their hands over who is accountable.”

A coastal manager confirmed the burial sites were owned and managed of the church authorities. “Ultimately it is up to them to decide the direction to take. Our role is here to help support them through that journey with residents.”

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

“Currently, there exists no unified opinion on what should happen yet. It requires productive local conversations to find the right answers for each village.”

The possibility of losing the churches and graveyards was labeled one of “immense sorrow for the area,” but church representatives also spoke of a belief in life after death, providing a theological viewpoint on the physical loss of hallowed earth.