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Families of people buried in graves vulnerable to shoreline retreat say that indecision over how to tackle the issue is creating avoidable anguish about the eternal homes of their departed family.

An Impending Danger to Historic Churchyards

Local authorities have identified three church graveyards in the communities of Happisburgh, Trimingham, and Mundesley as being at risk of being consumed by the ocean in the next few generations.

A recent report on the issue details a range of possible actions, from doing nothing to disinterring bodies and relocating them in more secure locations. Authorities maintain it is for local people to determine how to proceed.

“Right now we’re in limbo. It upsets me. My parents intended this to serve as their final resting place, but it won't be because of the encroaching sea.”

Estimates indicate at least a portion of one churchyard could be claimed by the sea in the next 80 years, but some residents fear it will happen far earlier. “In my view it’s got less than 20 years, if you consider what’s happened in the last 30 years,” one said.

Haunted by the Ghosts of Eccles

One resident recalled a childhood visit to the nearby village of Eccles, which has largely vanished into the water, along with its place of worship and burial ground.

“It was possible to see people’s bones,” she said. “Some have this romantic idea that the deceased will just get washed out to the ocean. They won’t. Individuals will take bones as souvenirs and go grave robbing looking for treasures. That is completely disrespectful.”

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

A Soldier's Resting Place in Jeopardy

Along the shoreline is situated the grave of a former paratrooper killed while working overseas. His mother said she could not sleep after discovering her son’s grave might one day be relocated.

“It truly 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 stop but says it is premature to exhume existing graves. “What I would choose for now is to take no action and watch carefully, but an early decision needs to be made when a critical moment has been reached.”

Searching for Answers and Certainty

An absence of agreement over when and how to tackle the problem has resulted in bereaved families feeling exasperated and worried.

Some want more coastal protections to slow the unavoidable loss and to allow funerals to continue for now. Different voices contend the time for relocation is drawing near.

“The situation is very emotional,” a family member stated. “The official study was thorough, but now there’s uncertainty about how it is taken forward. And all parties is washing their hands over who is accountable.”

A local official confirmed the burial sites were owned and managed of the church authorities. “Ultimately it is up to them to choose the direction to take. We are here to help support them through that journey with communities.”

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

“Currently, there exists no unified opinion on what should happen yet. It requires productive community discussions to find the appropriate answers for each community.”

The possibility of losing the historic sites was described as 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 temporal disappearance of hallowed earth.