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GALVESTON — Brief rain showers poured down sporadically Thursday on the quiet, desolate streets of Galveston’s Strand Historic District. Normally, the Strand is bustling with tourists. But on this day, in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl, many of The Strand’s streets and stores remain largely empty.

Star Drug Store, a diner and soda shop located along 23rd Street, commonly known as Tremont Street, reopened Tuesday — just one day after the hurricane hit.

“(It’s the) most inopportune time, of course,” said Natili Monsrud, owner and manager of Star Drug Store.

Monsrud is one of many Galveston businesses that rely on summer tourism to bring in huge profits. But she and other retailers are operating with uncertainty as the island works to recover after Hurricane Beryl hit the region.

The island saw wind gusts as fast as 94 mph, ransacking the area during one of its busiest weekends with around 300,000 extra people there to celebrate the Fourth of July, Mayor Craig Brown said Tuesday during a press conference.

Star Drug Store opened in 1886 as a pharmacy before it eventually became the first desegregated lunch counter in Galveston in the 1950s. The historic diner was packed Tuesday mainly because it was one of the few restaurants open, Monsrud said. But come Wednesday, business stalled.

“We should be out-the-door crazy everyday,” she said from behind the nearly empty horseshoe lunch counter Thursday. “This is our high tide but it’s not. This is (like) a normal spring day.”

‘Prime time’

Normally, this time of year is peak tourism season in Galveston. The island gains much of its summertime activity from visitors coming to enjoy the beach and an active cruise industry.

“It is prime time for visitors and for tourism,” Monsrud said. “Having to close anytime during your busiest months is not something you want to do.”

Although hurricane season officially started June 1, Monsrud said she’s used to seeing threats and storms occur later in the season between August and October.

“It’s crazy because it’s so early,” she said. “I think it took us all pretty much by surprise as far as getting that serious.”

Hurricane Beryl made landfall July 8 as a Category 1 storm and resulted in extended power outages for roughly 2.2 million people across the Houston. CenterPoint officials said about 500,000 could remain without power into next week.

Monsrud is among a handful of business owners who are concerned that the damage done from Hurricane Beryl and the threat of an active hurricane season this summer, may induce some fear among those now skeptical about coming to the beach.

Tani Trahan, who owns and operates Lolo Kai Smoothies and Wraps at the intersection of Church and Tremont Street with her husband Kris, said the island’s busy season usually starts on Memorial Day, but she’s noticed business in general has slowed down since last summer in comparison to previous years. Now Hurricane Beryl has not helped.

“We didn’t expect it to be as intense as it was,” she said.

Although it was her first hurricane, she said many in the community are stunned by the effect of the Category 1 storm, especially since the island has experienced stronger hurricanes before, like Hurricane Ike in 2008, which made landfall as a Category 2 hurricane.

“I think everybody was just kind of scared and just trying to get back on their feet,” Trahan said.

Trahan said they lost power during the storm, but fortunately, they had a generator and were able to salvage food. The storm forced them to close their doors for two days. They reopened Wednesday at their normal business hours to a slower than usual, but steady, crowd.

“It’s starting to pick back up. It’s just trickling in,” Trahan said. “I think people are starting to get back out. I think everybody's just kind of busy right now trying to take care of their house and find electricity and where they need to go.”

A limited Moody Gardens

Hurricane Beryl has also limited operations at popular vacation destination Moody Gardens, which experienced several intermittent power issues, said Jerri Hamachek, marketing director for the hotel, spa and convention center on Thursday morning. The theme park, which has an aquarium and animal exhibits, had to frequently source power from its emergency generator.

Storm debris and power outages resulted in the closure of many outdoor attractions and extensive cleanup efforts to its zipline and ropes course, its Colonel Paddlewheel Boat, golf course, and its Palm Beach waterpark area which sustained a down canopy, and destroyed sand beach area. The resort updated visitors daily on its Facebook page and advised on ways visitors can beat the heat and enjoy some of its indoor attractions.

Hamachek said Moody Gardens has plenty of things to do and their indoor attractions can be a diversion for local families with kids stranded in the heat and awaiting power.

“If you’re in our visitor center, you don’t have to buy a ticket. You can come in and just sit down and enjoy a little bit of AC,” she said.

The only thing visitors won’t be able to do is book rooms right now because they’re overbooked, she said, and the majority of their rooms are occupied by CenterPoint Energy crewmembers who have hundreds of trucks staged on site to restore power to the greater Galveston community.

“Our desire was to get open as soon as possible,” Hamachek said.

Hamachek noted that Moody Gardens has been a leading resource in the community since the “more extreme” Hurricane Ike struck in 2008.

“We’ll open our doors because we need to move forward and we have staff, we have employees who have jobs here,” she said. “We’re an important part of the community. We may not have tons of people coming right away, but we’re going to be open.”

Short-term decline

Although business across the island is slower than usual right now, officials with Visit Galveston do not anticipate tourism taking a big hit.

“We believe the damage from the storm, mainly from the wind, does not appear to be long-term,” said spokesperson Mary Beth Bassett. 

“Most of the businesses and attractions that did close and remain closed are because of lack of power. Once power is restored, they plan to reopen and welcome visitors.”

Since the Galveston Island Visitor Center opened Tuesday, “phones have been ringing off the hook” with people inquiring about Galveston’s status, Bassett said. Guests have also come in-person seeking information about things to do and asking what businesses are open.

“The long-term effects of Beryl remain to be seen,” she said. “We’re halfway through the summer – the island’s peak tourism season. We will know more in the coming weeks when we receive the Smith Travel Report that measures hotel occupancy and compares it year over year.’

Monsrud said she hopes the recovery time is soon.

“I would hope by next week this time that we would be starting to kind of groove back into things, if power is all back,” she said.

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