Frying Pan Shoals Light

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Coordinates: 33°29′N 77°35′W / 33.483°N 77.583°W / 33.483; -77.583
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Frying Pan Shoals Light
Frying Pan Lightship and Light Tower
Map
LocationNear North Carolina
Coordinates33°29′N 77°35′W / 33.483°N 77.583°W / 33.483; -77.583
Tower
Constructed1964
FoundationSteel
Automated1979
Height80 ft (24 m)
Fog signalFog horn
Light
Deactivated2003

Frying Pan Shoals Light Tower is a decommissioned lighthouse located on the Frying Pan Shoals approximately 39 miles (63 km) southeast of Southport, North Carolina and 32 miles (51 km) from Bald Head Island, North Carolina.[1] The tower is currently privately owned and was formerly a bed and breakfast retreat, and is noted for its survival through several significant tropical storms.

The light tower is modeled after a steel oil drilling platform, known as a "Texas tower", on top of four steel legs that was engineered to be used as a lighthouse housing several Coast Guard members. The 80-foot (24 m) light tower marks the shoals at the confluence of the Cape Fear River and the Atlantic Ocean.[2]

History

The shoals have been patrolled by a lightboat since 1854 by the United States Coast Guard.[3] In 1966, the light tower was built, and was manned year-round by a four-person crew until the operation of the light was automated in 1979.[4] The station was ultimately decommissioned in 2004, owing to the advent of GPS systems on ships making the facility obsolete.[3]

The Coast Guard considered demolishing the light for use as an artificial reef, but instead held an online auction where the winning bid was by a South Carolina diving and research firm Shipwrecks, Inc. in 2009 for $515,000.[2][dead link] However, the company failed to make the down-payment,[5] and subsequently the tower returned to government hands and was sold again in August 2010 for $85,000 to a private individual, Richard Neal of Charlotte, North Carolina.[4] Neal, with the aid of volunteers, has refurbished the light, converting it into a "bed-and-breakfast for the adventurous", with accommodation for up to eight.[6] The facility has seen hundreds of guests since opening in 2012.[7]

In August 2011, the Frying Pan Tower was directly hit[citation needed] by Hurricane Irene with measured winds of 67 mph (108 km/h) and waves of 28 ft (8.5 m). An observational flight the day after the storm, August 28, 2011, showed that the tower had no visible damage from the impact.[8] It was listed in an article in Time Magazine on light houses that have been restored to bed and breakfast facilities.

In November 2012, Hurricane Sandy went within a few dozen miles of the Frying Pan Tower but due to its being a low-category storm at the time, the only issue was a few disturbed ceiling tiles due to a window being left open[citation needed].

In September 2018, the Shoals were in the path of Hurricane Florence. Media coverage in the hours before the storms landfall noted the American flag on Frying Pan Tower being torn to shreds by the extreme conditions as the hurricane approached. This could be seen live from an Explore.org camera on the tower.[9][10][11] Coverage of the flag was widely viewed online, and the flag was eventually given the name 'Kevin' by livestream viewers.[3] After the storm passed, the flag was recovered and sold at an auction to raise money for the Wilmington Red Cross.[3] In 2019, it went through Hurricane Dorian. As the eye passed over the structure, a weather station on the tower reported a pressure of 959.5 mb.

The bed and breakfast was closed as of 2018 to allow for a full structural restoration.[12] The tower was put up for auction in May 2018.[7] As of 2019, Neal is selling fractional ownership shares to raise funds to complete the restoration, and the tower will be reserved for the exclusive use of the shareholders and their guests.[13]

Structural conditions

The light tower is accessible by helicopter and by boat. A January 2010 onsite inspection by an engineering firm that was contracted by the Coast Guard determined that the helipad platform can indeed support a helicopter and that the entire structure, while in need of repair, was structurally sound.[14] The lower stairs to the light tower were destroyed by a hurricane and the mid to upper section stairs have experienced significant deterioration due to the salt environment.

The platform on the tower consists of two floors.The subfloor is a living area of approximately 5,000 square feet (460 m2) that includes seven bedrooms, kitchen, office, storage area, recreation area and toilet facilities.[citation needed]

References

  1. ^ "Frying Pan Tower History". Frying Pan Tower, LLC.
  2. ^ a b "Frying Pan Shoals". Carolina Lights.com. March 6, 2009. Retrieved 2009-07-10.
  3. ^ a b c d Wright, Pam (September 17, 2018). "Frying Pan Tower Owner Hopes American Flag Ripped to Shreds By Florence Will Inspire People to Act". The Weather Channel. Retrieved 2019-04-11.
  4. ^ a b Horan, Jack (August 26, 2010). "New life for N.C.'s Frying Pan Shoals offshore tower". The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved 2010-08-26.
  5. ^ Steelman, Ben (July 8, 2009). "What are Frying Pan Shoals?". myreporter.com. Star-News. Retrieved 2010-08-26.
  6. ^ "A hotel 34 miles from land: The Frying Pan Tower". CNN. June 22, 2015. Retrieved 2019-04-10.
  7. ^ a b "Old Coast Guard tower off NC coast up for auction". WCNC. May 3, 2018. Retrieved 2019-04-11.
  8. ^ Frying Pan Tower (2011-08-29), Frying Pan Tower vs. Hurricane Irene, retrieved 2019-04-11
  9. ^ Phillips, Jack (2018-09-13). "Video: Frying Pan Tower's American Flag Fights Hurricane Florence on Livestream". Epoch Times. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  10. ^ Kooser, Amanda (2018-09-13). "See Hurricane Florence make landfall on this offshore live cam". CNET. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  11. ^ Berson, Scott (September 13, 2018). "Watch Hurricane Florence on live cameras as it lashes the Carolinas coast". The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved 2018-09-13.
  12. ^ "FRYING PAN TOWER - The Frying Pan Tower Coast Guard Light Station". Frying Pan Tower, LLC. Retrieved 2019-09-22.
  13. ^ "Frying Pan Tower Fractional Ownership - FRYING PAN TOWER". Frying Pan Tower, LLC. Retrieved 2019-09-22.
  14. ^ "Assesment_Report.txt". Archived from the original on 2010-11-12. Retrieved 2010-10-31.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Frying_Pan_Shoals_Light&oldid=917250448"