A South Shore cliff face pounded by Hurricane Ernesto is stable enough to withstand natural forces, including future storms, the Ministry of Public Works assured following concerns raised by residents.

According to the ministry, engineers are confident in measures taken to safeguard the structural stability of the area, which is in front of the Bermudiana Beach Resort at Warwick.

“This section is stable, resilient against erosion, and capable of withstanding future hurricanes,” it said.

The area, which is supported by a reinforcement wall, sustained damage when the Category 1 hurricane hit the island two weekends ago.

The ministry’s response this week came in the wake of fears raised by area residents about the stability of the rock face after the hurricane.

Beverley Connell, who lives nearby, said the ministry had played down the extent of damage.

Ms Connell told The Royal Gazette: “It’s really quite more extensive than what was told by the ministry.”

She added: “That whole cliff is unstable.”

Ms Connell, who previously expressed reservations about the project, said photographs taken by another concerned resident following the hurricane gave a different picture of the extent of damage caused by the storm.

“The public deserves to know the full extent of the damage”, she said, adding that it had dangerous structural implications.

“We will be the ones paying for what will be a substantial bill.

“This is going to cost a pretty penny to shore up the cliff, which is quite weak in a number of areas below the whole development.”

Days after the hurricane passed, the ministry said prompt repairs were to be carried out to the reinforcement wall.

In response to Ms Connell’s concerns, the ministry said this week it had reviewed the situation following Hurricane Ernesto.

Structural engineers from the ministry and the hotel were said to regularly inspect the cliff face.

The ministry said engineers had already designed an extension to the breakwater to the damaged area, west of the resort.

While providing photographs taken before and after the storm, the ministry said the reinforced wall remained intact and secure.

“Our structural engineers are confident in the measures taken to ensure the safety and integrity of the cliff supporting the resort,” the ministry said.

“We are well aware of the challenges faced by all properties on the South Shore and are following best practice to ameliorate the threat of erosion and our engineers will continue to monitor the site.”

The ministry said last week that an area west of the resort, which has been proposed for an events lawn, sustained “more significant” damage during the storm.

It said the area was weakened by the storm as well as the roots of invasive plants.

“I think that’s where a lot of the damage occurred,” Ms Connell said.

She said from observations after the storm that a beach leading to an elevator shaft within the cliff in front of the resort had been completely washed out.

Trash and debris was washed into the bottom of the shaft. “This was just a Category 1 storm,” she said.

She said the base of the elevator shaft is “pretty much” on the beach and claimed maintenance of the facility would rack up a considerable bill.

“I think the whole construction of it was kind of ill-advised because it’s just every storm that we’re going to have is going to flood that whole area,” she added.

She said the infrastructure presented “an actual maintenance nightmare”, adding that the bottom of the elevator shaft may have been submerged in the storm.

Ms Connell called for better planning, adding: “We just got to have sensible policies to make sure that these developments are far enough back to be cognizant of, and possibly even expect, these sorts of things to actually happen. Our cliffs are just exposed to the ocean and the pounding seas every time we have a hurricane.”

Ms Connell said restorations after every storm would prove costly.

“We spent so much money on this development as it is, and I think we’ve just not paid attention to the real dangers of what’s happening below the development, which are going to basically be very costly now,” she said.

Ms Connell said stronger storms would eventually head in the island’s direction. She added: “So that whole section is a real question mark of structural integrity going forward.”