1/18/2024 0 Comments Frying pan tower n.c. coastThe buoy tranmit data on wind speed, water and air temperature, air pressure, dew point and wind direction to weather stations on shore. Instead, the National Weather Service anchored a 3-meter discus buoy near the tower. Last fall, the Coast Guard announced it would not replace the weather instruments on the Frying Pan tower. “At least once a year, I take a trip out to see the tower.” “The tower is like a friend to me,” says Dugan. Hoggard High School ocean science teacher in Wilmington, agrees. “There has been a light ship or tower here since 1854, with the exception of three years during the Civil War and two years since World War II.” “It is respectful and appropriate to give the tower a burial at sea,” says Richard Cecelski, Carolina Oecan Studies director. The hard bottom provides an ideal habitat for marine life, including snapper, grouper and porgy. “The demolition project was still out for bids in March.”Īfter the tower is dismantled, it will be used an artificial reef that will be managed by the N.C. The dismantling of the tower is an ongoing project, says Dave Santos, media relations specialist in the Coast Guard’s Atlantic area office. Since Frying Pan Shoals was a dangerous area and more than 20 miles out in the Atlantic, it was an important navigational point for mariners.” “They replaced light ships as an economic move and navigational aid. “Light towers were like lighthouses in the water,” says Bob Browning, Coast Guard chief historian. The tower - along with the one at Diamond Shoals - will be dismantled in the near future because of advances in radio navigation. When there was a crew on the tower, you could at least relay a message.” “There were times when people needed assistance on their boats, but couldn’t be heard on shore. “It was like taking out the soul of the tower,” he adds. Carolina Ocean Studies, an educational tour group out of Carolina Beach, sponsored the trip. Hurricanes washed away the tower’s bulkhead, landing, and parts of the spiral staircase that Allen used to climb to the top, he recalls.ĭuring a charter trip on the SS Winner Queen, Allen sang and shared his memories of working on the tower - which transmitted signals to ships near low sandy areas or shoals. “It is good to see her after 25 years,” says Allen, who was one of the last U.S. The restoration of Frying Pan Tower is managed by FPTower Inc., a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization dedicated to restoring, protecting and preserving the former United States Coastguard (USCG) Light Station off the coast of North Carolina for future generations.While standing on a charter boat far out in the Atlantic, Mike Allen points to the 125-foot Frying Pan Shoals Light Tower that was once his home away from home. Responsible for saving countless lives at sea, today the tower offers safety for mariners in the Atlantic Ocean, serves as a natural ecosystem for marine wildlife, and provides a location for numerous research and educational institutions to conduct environmental and oceanic studies. It was officially retired in 1992, rendered obsolete and for all purposes abandoned. After 28 years of operation, the US Coast Guard Light Station went dark and slowly fell into disrepair due to the advent of Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and radar. The Coast Guard staffed the light station until 1979, when the beacon was automated. Frying Pan Tower™ was erected in 1964 to help ships avoid running aground the shallow waters known as the Frying Pan Shoals.
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