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Loved ones whose relatives buried in graves at risk from shoreline retreat argue that indecision on how best to tackle the issue is creating unnecessary distress concerning the final resting places of their departed family.

An Impending Danger to Historic Graveyards

The council have identified three burial grounds in the villages of Happisburgh, Mundesley, and Trimingham as being in danger of being swallowed by the sea in the next few generations.

A newly published study on the issue sets out a range of options, from taking no action to disinterring bodies and reburying them in more secure locations. Officials say it is for the community to decide how to move forward.

“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 sea.”

Estimates suggest at least a portion of one graveyard could be claimed by the sea in the next 80 years, but some locals worry it will happen much sooner. “I think it’s got under 20 years, if you look at what’s occurred in the last 30 years,” one said.

Haunted by the Ghosts of Eccles

One resident recalled a school trip to the neighbouring village of Eccles, which has almost entirely vanished into the sea, along with its church and graveyard.

“It was possible to see human remains,” she said. “Certain people hold this romantic idea that the deceased will just get washed out to the ocean. They won’t. Individuals will take bones as mementos and go plundering graves looking for treasures. That is completely undignified.”

“I’m worried that the identical fate that happened at Eccles will happen at Happisburgh and there’ll be skeletons on the beach. I’d be disgusted by that.”

A Soldier's Grave in Peril

Along the coast is situated the burial plot of a ex-soldier who died while working abroad. His mother expressed she lost sleep after discovering her son’s final plot might one day be moved.

“It does disturb me to consider this won’t be his permanent resting place,” she said. “To our family it’s an significant site to visit.”

She believes, new burials should stop but says it is premature to disturb current plots. “What I would choose for now is to do nothing and watch carefully, but an timely resolution needs to be made when a tipping point has been attained.”

Seeking Solutions and Certainty

The lack of consensus over the timing and method to tackle the challenge has resulted in grieving relatives feeling frustrated and worried.

Several families want more sea defences to slow the inevitable erosion and to permit burials to proceed for now. Others contend the moment for moving graves is drawing near.

“It is very emotional,” said one relative. “The official study was really good, but now there’s uncertainty about how it is implemented. And everybody is avoiding responsibility over who is accountable.”

A coastal manager said the graveyards were owned and managed of the local diocese. “Ultimately it is up to them to choose the path to take. We are here to assist them through that process with communities.”

He added there was time to consider all the choices. “This concerns decades before it starts to be lost.”

“There is no unified opinion on what should happen yet. It requires good local conversations to discover the right solutions for each village.”

The prospect of the loss of the historic sites was described as one of “immense sadness for the area,” but church representatives also spoke of a belief in resurrection, providing a theological viewpoint on the physical disappearance of hallowed earth.