Sanibel's Lighthouse Beach reopens nearly nine months after Hurricane Ian

With cheers and confetti, Sanibel celebrated the reopening of Lighthouse Beach Friday morning, almost nine months after Hurricane Ian.

The late-September storm tore through the island city, carving up its shoreline and swamping many of its buildings ‒ including the pair of historic wooden cottages at the foot of the Coast Guard-operated beacon at the island's eastern tip.

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The two substantial Cracker buildings which housed caretakers until 1949, when the light was automated, were swept into the Gulf.

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Though the storm also took out one of its four cast-iron legs to Ian, the 1884 lighthouse didn't fall, becoming a symbol of resilience. A wooden prosthetic now helps holds it up until a new leg can be fabricated.

Meanwhile, beach and surrounding park remained closed, as crews are scooped and sifted the surrounding sand. John Lai, president and CEO of the Sanibel and Captiva Islands Chamber of Commerce, described both recovery efforts as "monumental"

"The lighthouse was a huge task. Looking at the beaches, whatever was buried in the sand was recovered to make the beach safe," Lai told The News-Press earlier this month.

Though the February relighting of the beacon was a morale boost, Lai called the reopening of the park "the shot in the arm (the community) needs."

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Sanibel's Lighthouse Beach reopens nearly nine months after Hurricane Ian