A popular beach café is one of Storm Bert’s latest victims – with heavy damage coming amid an ongoing battle to secure planning permission to “future-proof” it.
Owner Emily Davidson, 29, had just decorated the Castle Beach Café in Falmouth, Cornwall, for Christmas, decking it out with fairy lights ahead of the holiday season.
But she was dealt a devastating blow when the storm took aim at the vulnerable seating area, leaving it completely destroyed.
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It comes just days after she submitted plans to Cornwall Council for a new indoor seating area, which would be made from a shipping container – in the hopes that this should protect it from future damage.
“It’s always devastating to see the damage in the morning,” Emily told Need To Know.
“A few days before the storm, I submitted a planning application for a converted shipping container – just like the café which always survives the storms – to create a more robust seating area.
“It also means that we can open during bad weather events, as we will have somewhere warm and dry for customers.
“I suppose Storm Bert has highlighted the need for this new seating area, and I’m hoping that Cornwall Council will take this into consideration when assessing my planning application.
“The application has had loads of support on social media and the planning application portal from the public, who really want to see this happen.”
The main café area itself is made of a converted shipping container, which has proved durable enough during previous storms – including Storm Pierrick in April, which also damaged the outside seating area.
The latest damage took Emily by surprise, and she had just decorated the café for Christmas, where they were due to open from 14 December – 2 January.
She said: “I didn’t expect Storm Bert to cause such damage, mainly because the winds weren’t easterly and the tide wasn’t particularly high.
“I had planned to open for 3 weeks over the Christmas period.
“It’s a really buzzing time for the business, people are eager to sample Christmas food and drink before the season ends and everyone is on their New Year’s diet.
“So it’s always been a successful tradition for the business to open over Christmas.
“We decorate the seating area with fairy lights and festive foliage, and offer blankets and hot water bottles to keep people warm.”
Luckily, she still plans to open the café, but will be scrambling to find a temporary solution to shelter customers from the rain.
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