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Families of people buried in graves vulnerable to shoreline retreat say that a lack of decision over how to tackle the problem is creating avoidable anguish concerning the final resting places of their loved ones.

An Impending Danger to Historic Churchyards

Local authorities have identified three church graveyards in the communities of Happisburgh, Trimingham, and Mundesley as being in danger of being consumed by the ocean in the coming decades.

A newly published study on the issue sets out a series of options, from taking no action to disinterring bodies and reburying them in safer locations. Officials say it is for local people to determine how to move forward.

“Right now we’re in limbo. It causes me distress. My parents wanted this to serve as their last home, but it won't be because of the encroaching sea.”

Estimates indicate at least part of one churchyard could be claimed by the waves in the next 80 years, but some locals fear it will happen much sooner. “I think it’s got less than 20 years, if you look at what’s occurred in the last 30 years,” a farmer stated.

Haunted by the Past

A local business owner remembered a school trip to the nearby settlement of Eccles, which has almost entirely vanished into the water, along with its place of worship and burial ground.

“You could see human remains,” she said. “Some have this romantic idea that people’s remains will just get carried away to the ocean. That is not the case. Individuals will take bones as souvenirs and go grave robbing in search of valuables. It’s completely disrespectful.”

“I fear that the identical fate that befell at Eccles will occur at Happisburgh and there’ll be skeletons on the beach. I would feel disgusted by that.”

A Paratrooper's Grave in Peril

Further up the shoreline is situated the burial plot of a ex-soldier killed while serving overseas. His parent said she lost sleep after discovering her son’s final plot might one day be relocated.

“It truly trouble me to consider this won’t be his lasting home,” she said. “For us it’s an significant place to go.”

She believes, new interments should cease but says it is too soon to disturb existing graves. “My preference for now is to take no action and closely monitor, but an timely resolution must be made when a critical moment has been attained.”

Searching for Answers and Clarity

An absence of consensus over the timing and method to handle the problem has resulted in bereaved families feeling exasperated and worried.

Several families are calling for additional coastal protections to slow the unavoidable loss and to permit burials to continue for now. Others argue the moment for relocation is approaching.

“The situation is very emotive,” said one relative. “The council’s report was thorough, but now there’s confusion about how it is implemented. And everybody is avoiding responsibility over who is responsible.”

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

It was also stated there was ample time to consider all the choices. “We are talking decades before it starts to be lost.”

“There is no common view on what should be done yet. It requires productive local conversations to find the right answers for each village.”

The prospect of the loss of the churches and graveyards was described as one of “immense sorrow for the area,” but church representatives also spoke of a doctrine in resurrection, offering a theological viewpoint on the physical disappearance of hallowed earth.