Relatives' Anguish Regarding Shoreline Erosion Threatening Coastal Norfolk Burial Sites

Families whose relatives buried in resting places vulnerable to coastal erosion say that indecision over how to address the problem is causing them avoidable anguish about the eternal homes of their departed family.

An Impending Threat to Historic Graveyards

Local authorities have identified three church graveyards in the communities of Happisburgh, Trimingham, and Mundesley as being in danger of being swallowed by the sea in the next few generations.

A recent report on the situation details a series of possible actions, from taking no action to disinterring bodies and reburying them in safer sites. Authorities say it is for the community to decide how to proceed.

“Right now we’re in limbo. It causes me distress. They intended this to be their final resting place, but it won't be because of the sea.”

Projections indicate at least part of one graveyard could fall into the sea in the next 80 years, but some locals worry it will happen far earlier. “I think it’s got less than 20 years, if you consider what’s occurred in the last 30 years,” a farmer stated.

Haunted by the Past

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

“It was possible to see human remains,” she said. “Some have this romantic idea that the deceased will just get carried away to the ocean. They won’t. People will take bones as mementos and go grave robbing in search of treasures. That is completely undignified.”

“I fear that the same thing that happened at Eccles will happen at Happisburgh and there’ll be skeletons on the beach. I would feel appalled by that.”

A Soldier's Resting Place in Peril

Further up the shoreline lies the grave of a former paratrooper who died while serving overseas. His parent said she could not sleep after learning her son’s final plot might one day be moved.

“It does trouble me to consider this may not remain his lasting home,” she said. “To our family it’s an significant place to go.”

In her view, new burials should stop but says it is premature to exhume current plots. “What I would choose for now is to do nothing and closely monitor, but an timely resolution must be made when a critical moment has been reached.”

Searching for Answers and Certainty

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

Several families want additional coastal protections to slow the unavoidable loss and to allow funerals to proceed for now. Different voices contend the moment for moving graves is approaching.

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

A coastal manager said the burial sites were owned and managed of the local diocese. “In the end it is down to them to choose the path to take. We are here to help support them through that process with residents.”

It was also stated there was time to weigh all the options. “We are talking many years before it starts to be lost.”

“Currently, there exists no common view on what should be done yet. It requires good community discussions to discover the right solutions for each community.”

The possibility of the loss of the historic sites was labeled one of “profound sorrow for the local community,” but church representatives also referenced a doctrine in resurrection, providing a spiritual perspective on the temporal disappearance of hallowed earth.