MONTEGO BAY, St James — Still recovering from being inundated with sea water during the passage of a cold front in February, Pier One General Manager Jason Russell and his team could do without the stress of now waiting to see what Hurricane Beryl will do to Jamaica.

“We basically hoping for the best,” Russell told the Jamaica Observer on Monday. “There is worry but can’t really do much about that.”

Last time, sections of the popular seaside spot and the protective wall along the shoreline were damaged after they were lashed by high tides that came from an unexpected direction. He is worried Beryl will continue to batter the shoreline.

“The Urban Development Corporation (UDC) needs to fix it because these storms are going to do a lot of damage,” Russell predicted.

He thinks that area needs professional boulder work to ensure that it is able to withstand storm surges that a hurricane will bring. He said Pier One has been doing work along the shoreline but it is mostly focused on fixing the restaurant’s second entrance and bar that were damaged in February.

His father Robert Russell, who established and operated Pier One for years, was hopeful that Beryl will do minimal damage.

“Normally, we never really have problems with hurricanes. What gave us the damage recently is the north-western from the sea, the high tides that washed over and mashed up the place,” the elder Russell explained.

“We have been through three or four hurricanes and it just blow through the place without creating any major impact,” he added.

That is because of the structure of the facility: open, airy, and mostly made of wood.

However, Robert Russell said an assessment will be done on Tuesday to determine the way forward.

“I think we will have to stop working tomorrow because this hurricane look like it definitely coming and even though it may not be a direct hit, it might have storm surges,” he said.