JUNO BEACH, Fla. — Powerful waves and strong winds have left their mark on the Juno Beach Pier, forcing officials to close the popular fishing spot indefinitely while crews wait for conditions to improve enough to assess the damage.
For people who came to Juno Beach on Tuesday to see the conditions firsthand, the strength of the ocean was impossible to miss.
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"It's just amazing the way they roll in and pound and the power," said Melissa Stolz, who lives in Jupiter but came to Juno Beach to see the rough conditions. "Between the full moon and the gale-force winds, everything, it's just a perfect storm."
Kristine Galganski lives in North Palm Beach and said Tuesdays are typically her days to visit Juno Beach. After hearing about the damage, she came out to see the pier for herself.
"That's Mother Nature at her best," Galganski said, "and she's saying I'm here and I'm ready."
Aerial footage from local photographer Paul Dabill showed floor panels lifted throughout the pier, with some panels missing.
Bud Gilfillan, who lives in Jupiter but was visiting Juno Beach, said the conditions stood out to him.
"I'm seeing the heaviest northeast winds and currents that I've seen in a long time," Gilfillan said.
Gilfillan was struck by the amount of force it would take to move the decking.
"I mean, can you imagine the force of those waves pushing that decking up in the air and washing it down," Gilfillan said.
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WPTV worked to find answers to understand the extent of the damage the pier had received and contacted Palm Beach County Parks and Recreation Director Jennifer Cirillo.
"The wooden panels are designed to pop out in high surf conditions and in order to save greater structural damage on the pier," Cirillo said in a statement.
The missing panels may be part of the pier's design, but officials believe there could be other damage that would impact when the pier will reopen.
"It does appear during this event, however, that some of the railing may also be damaged, which would require repair," Cirillo said.
For Stolz, seeing the pier closed was difficult.
"I'm just sad it's such a landmark for locals to come down and walk on the fishing pier," she said.
County staff must now wait for the high surf to subside before they can safely assess the entire pier and determine what will need to be repaired.
"It's very damaging," Gilfillan said. "It's going to last a couple more days."
Cirillo said it typically takes county crews a few days after high-surf events to retrieve loose panels and put them back into the pier. However, the county won't know whether there will be additional costs to reopen the pier until crews can safely determine the full impact.
"Once high surf conditions subside, our staff will be able to do a full assessment of this public park infrastructure," Cirillo said. "It typically takes our team a few days following high surf events to retrieve any loose panels and place them back into the pier structure. We will not know what costs above staff time are required for reopening until after we can safely assess the entire event's impacts."
For now, there is no clear reopening timeline.
"It's gonna take time. It, it's Mother Nature. We can't put a time limit on what she does," Stolz said.
The pier isn't the only place where the rough conditions are having an impact. Some stairs at beach access points have also been damaged, and the Town of Jupiter has closed some access points because of erosion.
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