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Families of people laid to rest in resting places at risk from coastal erosion say that a lack of decision over how to tackle the issue is causing them unnecessary distress about the eternal homes of their loved ones.

An Impending Danger to Ancient Graveyards

The council 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 next few generations.

A newly published study on the situation details a range of options, from doing nothing to disinterring bodies and reburying them in safer sites. Authorities maintain it is for the community to decide how to proceed.

“At the moment we’re in a state of uncertainty. It upsets me. My parents wanted this to serve as their final resting place, but it won't be because of the sea.”

Projections indicate at least part of one churchyard could fall into the waves 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 occurred in the last 30 years,” one said.

Haunted by the Ghosts of Eccles

One resident remembered a childhood visit to the nearby settlement of Eccles, which has largely disappeared into the water, including its place of worship and burial ground.

“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 sea. That is not the case. People will collect remains as mementos and go grave robbing looking for valuables. It’s completely undignified.”

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

A Paratrooper's Grave in Peril

Further up the coast lies the grave of a ex-soldier who died while serving overseas. His parent said she could not sleep after discovering her child's grave 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 burials should stop but says it is premature to exhume existing graves. “What I would choose 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 Clarity

An absence of consensus over the timing and method to tackle the challenge has left grieving relatives feeling frustrated and anxious.

Several families are calling for more sea defences to slow the inevitable erosion and to permit burials to continue for now. Others contend the moment for relocation is drawing near.

“It is very emotive,” a family member stated. “The official study was thorough, but now there’s uncertainty about how it is taken forward. And everybody is avoiding responsibility over who is accountable.”

A coastal manager confirmed the graveyards were owned and managed of the church authorities. “Ultimately it is up to them to choose the path to take. We are here to assist them through that journey with residents.”

He added there was ample time to weigh all the options. “We are talking many years before it begins getting lost.”

“Currently, there exists no common view on what should be done yet. It requires productive local conversations to discover the appropriate 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 faith leaders also spoke of a belief in resurrection, offering a spiritual perspective on the physical disappearance of hallowed earth.