Shifting sands at Blakeney Point reveal eerie remains of century-old shipwreck

The wreck of the SS Hjordis is proving a hazard to shipping at the entrance to Blakeney Harbour Archant

A century after slipping beneath the waves, the shifting sands of time have exposed the skeletal remains of a ship off the Norfolk coast.

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The wreck of the SS Hjordis is creating a hazard for shipping at the entrance to Blakeney Harbour The wreck of the SS Hjordis is creating a hazard for shipping at the entrance to Blakeney Harbour

The previously buried wreck of the SS Hjordis has lain off Blakeney Point since running aground in 1916.

Exposed by the tides, the remnants of the 976-ton Norwegian collier now sit at the middle of the entrance to Blakeney Harbour, where it is posing a hazard to boats.

Stunning aerial images, taken from a drone, show the hull of the ship clearly visible just below the waterline next to a danger beacon.

The channel has moved half a mile to the east in the past year and as the wreck has been uncovered the flow of water has scoured her out.

Harbour users, who are represented by the Blakeney Harbour Association, have been receiving regular updates in the past month or two.

Blakeney Harbour Association volunteers have had to move warning buoys in the channel to keep sailors away from danger.

Trinty House, a charity dedicated to safeguarding seafarers, recently sent two vessels to position a new buoy close to the wreck.

Harbour association secretary Charlie Ward said: “It is quite astounding just how far the channel has moved over a very short space of time.

“With the wreck now in the middle of the channel and the channel continuing to move east, there is a lot of work for our volunteers to do, frequently rebuoying the harbour entrance channel to keep pace with these changes.

“After being buried for so long the ship has appeared almost like a ghostly Mary Celeste.”