The owner of the Beach Hut in Lossiemouth fears more extreme weather during the winter could “cripple” his business after days of flooding.
Water poured into the car park at the West Beach on Sunday with stones, seaweed and other debris left strewn across the ground.
Days later the surface remains almost completely submerged making it impossible for beach-goers to use it – except for one person who took to a kayak.
Volunteers have been offering to help with buckets, spades and brushes to clear away the mess.
But owner Ryan Thomson fears repeat situations during the winter months could have a devastating impact on trade.
Fears for Beach Hut events
The Beach Hut cafe, which is in an idyllic spot on Lossiemouth’s West Beach, is extremely popular with locals and tourists alike during the summer months.
However, customers can slow to a trickle when the weather gets cold.
Extreme high tides at the weekend coupled with heavy rain led to the car park becoming submerged.
Mr Thomson described the current flooding, which has come earlier in the winter than usual, as a “nightmare”.
He said: “We had a lot of support on Sunday, people were actually parking up on the main road and walked down to us which really helped us out.
“It’s a major problem though. The car park floods, but it usually doesn’t happen until the spring tides in March or April.
“We didn’t have this problem at this time last year. I don’t know what’s going to happen this year with the recurring weather problems.
“We’ve got events in November and we’re filling up fast in December so we really can’t afford for it to happen again or it will cripple us.”
Support for Beach Hut from Lossiemouth community to fight flooding
The Beach Hut has been inundated with support from Lossiemouth locals to help with the flooding.
Volunteers have used spades, brushes and buckets to clear away the debris and a pump has been donated to aid the efforts.
Mr Thomson said: “People say just buy a pump, but without any money coming in it’s very difficult because I’ve still got to pay staff without customers.
“I’ve got a few friends coming down to help and someone has let us borrow a pump too.
“The water is just sitting there. I don’t know if it needs more drainage but we need to shift it to open properly.”
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