Joint Task Force Guantanamo Public Affairs
01.29.2011 Story by Petty Officer 2nd Class Wesley Kreiss GUANTANAMO BAY, Cuba - Structure “eventually will become a safety hazard and have to be demolished.”
Naval Station Guantanamo Bay’s historic Windward Point Lighthouse and onsite living quarters are in grave danger of entering their final chapter in the history pages of the United States’ oldest overseas military installation.
At 60-feet-tall and 107 years old, the primarily steel structure continues to steadily decay after decades of neglect and wear from weather, sea water and insufficient funding.
“The main entrance was secured from further access between 1998 and 1999,” said JoAnn King, NAVSTA GTMO Public Works Department procurement technician. “It (the lighthouse) was determined structurally unsound and unsafe by rust and corrosion (crews) shortly afterward and guided tours are no longer available.”
Many long-time Guantanamo Bay residents, including King, feel it will be difficult to secure appropriate means to save something that spent the last decade serving as little more than an ornament.
“The sad thing is we probably will never get the funds to either restore or repair the lighthouse,” said NAVSTA Environmental Director Michael McCord, who assumed responsibility for the property late last year. “Eventually it will become a safety hazard and have to be demolished.”
Although the lighthouse was condemned, the nearby living quarters remain open to visitors as a museum – showcasing the house itself and various historic Guantanamo Bay artifacts. It too may suffer the fate of its towering neighbor with King noting the museum is currently closed to the public.
“It’s a piece of GTMO history, and I have a belief that we should always try to preserve history,” said McCord. “We are currently working with the cultural resource folks at NAVFAC [Naval Facilities] Region Southeast and are looking into possible alternative funding streams that can be used to pay for the repair and renovation.”
Until then, iguanas make their homes among the nearby boats and the future of the light house remains uncertain and a once shining beacon to the sea may forever go dark.
Stumble It!
