A South East Cornwall beachside cafe which closed down after being wrecked by one of the worst winter storms in the last 50 years, is due to reopen today. Seaton Beach Cafe was flooded five times during the appalling weather and high tides of January and February, but it was the great storm on Valentine's night, which left a trail of devastation along Cornwall's south coast, which took its final toll. Staff, family, friends and volunteers from the village have rallied over the last four months to help owner Nicky Barry to get the cafe up and running again in time for the main summer season. The repairs will have cost in the region of £180,000 when all the work is complete. The barbecue area, which was ruined by giant waves which also threw up tonnes of sand, has yet to be tackled, but there is still seating for up to 50 in the undercover outside area and in the open air. The cafe itself has been completely refurbished. 'The flooding left us with an empty shell, everything has had to be replaced,' said Nicky. 'The kitchen alone has cost £50,000 as the seawater contaminated everything. 'It's been an horrendous time and I am still stressed as there is so much paperwork to do dealing with the insurance claims and everything else. 'The flood help schemes are not as plain sailing as they seem. I have had to pay for all the work upfront before I can claim any money back.' Nicky said that in the 10 years she has been at the cafe she had never seen such huge waves as those which came into Seaton during the storms, but Valentine's night was the worst. 'There was so much debris around the cafe, including a lifebuoy all the way from the Helford Passage, and boat engines,' she said. 'After months of asking them, Cornwall Council has been cleaning the beach this week and sifting through the sand to remove anything dangerous to the public such as glass.' Nicky put in a sea defence wall around the cafe area some time ago, but she says you wouldn't know they were there now. 'There used to be a 10ft drop down to the beach from the cafe but the storms have left us on the same level, making us more vulnerable than before,' she said. 'Fortunately the Seaton River has now almost found its way back to its normal course on our side of the beach which offers us some protection. 'We are very happy to be open again and looking forward to a good summer. 'We will probably hold a re-opening celebration in about two weeks when we have had a chance to settle in again. I am trying not to think towards winter yet. I am hoping the weather will be kinder to us this time.'