Relatives' Anguish Regarding Coastal Degradation Endangering Norfolk Burial Sites
Families whose relatives laid to rest in graves at risk from coastal erosion argue that indecision over how to tackle the problem is creating unnecessary distress about the eternal homes of their loved ones.
An Impending Threat to Ancient Graveyards
Local authorities have singled out three burial grounds in the villages of Happisburgh, Mundesley, and Trimingham as being in danger of being consumed by the sea in the next few generations.
A newly published study on the situation sets out a series of options, from taking no action to disinterring bodies and reburying them in safer sites. Officials say it is for local people to decide how to proceed.
“At the moment we’re in limbo. It upsets me. My parents wanted this to serve as their final resting place, but it isn’t going to be because of the encroaching sea.”
Projections 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 much sooner. “In my view it’s got under 20 years, if you look at what’s happened in the last 30 years,” one said.
Troubled by the Past
One resident recalled a childhood visit to the nearby village of Eccles, which has largely vanished into the water, along with its church and graveyard.
“It was possible to see people’s bones,” she said. “Certain people hold this romantic idea that people’s remains will just get washed out to the ocean. That is not the case. People will take bones as mementos and go plundering graves in search of treasures. It’s completely undignified.”
“I’m worried that the identical fate that befell at Eccles will happen here and there’ll be bones on the beach. I’d be appalled by that.”
A Paratrooper's Resting Place in Peril
Along the coast is situated the burial plot of a former paratrooper who died while working abroad. His parent said she could not sleep after discovering her son’s grave might one day be relocated.
“It truly trouble me to think this may not remain his lasting resting place,” she said. “To our family it’s an important site to visit.”
She believes, new burials should stop but says it is premature to exhume current plots. “My preference for now is to take no action and watch carefully, but an timely resolution needs to be made when a tipping point has been attained.”
Seeking Answers and Clarity
An absence of consensus over when and how to tackle the challenge has resulted in bereaved families feeling frustrated and anxious.
Several families are calling for more coastal protections to slow the inevitable erosion and to allow funerals to proceed for now. Others contend the moment for relocation is drawing near.
“It is very emotive,” a family member stated. “The council’s report was thorough, but now there’s uncertainty about how it is taken forward. And everybody is washing their hands over who is accountable.”
A local official said the burial sites were owned and managed of the church authorities. “Ultimately it is down to them to choose the direction to take. Our role is here to assist them through that journey with communities.”
He added there was ample time to weigh all the options. “We are talking decades before it starts to be lost.”
“Currently, there exists no unified opinion on what should happen yet. It requires productive community discussions to find the right answers for each community.”
The possibility of losing the churches and graveyards was described as one of “profound sorrow for the local community,” but faith leaders also referenced a doctrine in resurrection, providing a theological perspective on the temporal disappearance of sacred ground.