Families' Anguish Over Coastal Degradation Threatening Coastal Norfolk Graves
Families whose relatives laid to rest in graves vulnerable to coastal erosion argue that a lack of decision over how to tackle the problem is creating unnecessary distress about the eternal homes of their loved ones.
A Looming Threat to Ancient Graveyards
Local authorities have identified three burial grounds in the villages of Happisburgh, Mundesley, and Trimingham as being in danger of being engulfed by the sea in the coming decades.
A recent report on the situation sets out a range of possible actions, from taking no action to exhuming remains and relocating them in safer sites. Officials maintain it is for local people to decide how to proceed.
“At the moment we’re in a state of uncertainty. It causes me distress. They intended this to serve as their final resting place, but it isn’t going to be because of the 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. “I think it’s got less than 20 years, if you look at what’s happened in the last 30 years,” one said.
Troubled by the Ghosts of Eccles
One resident recalled a school trip to the nearby settlement of Eccles, which has largely disappeared into the water, along with its church and graveyard.
“You could see human remains,” she said. “Some have this idealized notion that the deceased will just get carried away to sea. They won’t. Individuals will take bones as souvenirs and go plundering graves in search of valuables. That is completely undignified.”
“I fear that the same thing that befell at Eccles will happen at Happisburgh and there’ll be skeletons on the shore. I’d be appalled by that.”
A Soldier's Grave in Jeopardy
Further up the coast is situated the grave of a ex-soldier killed while working overseas. His mother said she lost sleep after discovering her son’s final plot might one day be relocated.
“It truly trouble me to think this won’t be his permanent home,” she said. “For us it’s an important site to visit.”
In her view, 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 timely resolution must be made when a critical moment has been attained.”
Seeking Solutions and Certainty
The lack of agreement over the timing and method to handle the challenge has left grieving relatives feeling frustrated and worried.
Some want more sea defences to slow the inevitable erosion and to permit funerals to continue for now. Different voices contend the time for relocation is approaching.
“The situation is very emotive,” said one relative. “The official study was really good, but now there’s uncertainty about how it is taken forward. And all parties is washing their hands over who is responsible.”
A coastal manager said the burial sites were under the care of the local diocese. “In the end it is up to them to decide the direction to take. We are here to help support them through that process with communities.”
He added there was time to weigh all the choices. “This concerns many years before it begins getting lost.”
“Currently, there exists no common view on what should be done yet. We need good community discussions to find the appropriate answers for each village.”
The possibility of losing the churches and graveyards was described as one of “immense sorrow for the area,” but faith leaders also spoke of a doctrine in resurrection, providing a theological viewpoint on the temporal loss of sacred ground.