Its bright light and unique signalling has been a well know feature to seafarers, locals and visitors alike for decades, but an iconic lighthouse on the east coast has undergone changes to modernise the systems used.
Flamborough Lightouse, which sits almost on the tip of the headland, was constructed in 1806 to help shipping keep clear of the undersea rocks and unpredictable currents.
Standing at 26.5m high (87ft) the imposing white cylindrical building can be spotted from miles around.
With the new changes, the beams of light will not ‘sweep’ the sea anymore, but remain static with LED flashing lanterns used as the main and standby navigation lights.
A spokesman for Trinity House, which oversees the running of lighthouses, lightships and navigationsl aids around the country, said: “Trinity House works continuously through a rolling programme of lighthouse modernisation.
“We do this to ensure that our aids to navigation service benefits from using modern, efficient and reliable technologies and systems.
“At Flamborough Head Lighthouse, we are undertaking works to modernise the aid to navigation equipment.
Works earmarked for the headland lighthouses include:
Drain and remove the hazardous mercury from the optic pedestal;
Remove the optic from the lantern room and install it in the lighthouse tower base as a display for the visiting public;
Build new lantern platform and access steps;
Install new LED flashing lanterns as the main and standby navigation lights.
However, several local people have commented on the changes with one saying he would miss the sweeping light of the beam and another lady saying ‘Always loved seeing it when on a walk on an evening. Feel like I should have known and I would have visited at night one more time before it changed.’
A notice to mariners issued by Trinity House gives the following statement.
‘The nominal range of the main light white sector will be permanently reduced to 18nm.
‘The main light characteristic of Fl (4) 15s will remain unaltered but have a revised composition as follows:
Flash: 1.0s
Eclipse: 1.0s
Flash: 1.0s
Eclipse: 1.0s
Flash: 1.0s
Eclipse: 1.0s
Flash: 1.0s
Eclipse: 8.0s
Total: Fl (4) 15s
‘The nominal range of the hazard warning signal will be permanently reduced to 1nm.
‘The hazard warning signal characteristic will change to 1 blast of 3 seconds duration every 30 seconds.’
