UK Monster Owners Club Forum » .: UKMOC Regions :. » Region Announcements » Suffolk » Orfordness Lighthouse.

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Old 26-09-2019, 09:01 PM   #31
jakefh
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Well I have no idea how to put pictures into a post...

It worked in the test area, honest!

http://www.ukmonster.co.uk/monster/s...ad.php?t=57814
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Old 26-09-2019, 10:08 PM   #32
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Great to meet you all today, new faces and old.
Was a very interesting day, shame it's not more straightforward to be able to save the lighthouse from the sea.
I had a good run back, the further south I travelled the drier it became, got back home just after 8. Kids were super excited to see where daddy had been today.

Anybody interested in a trip to Newhaven fort at some point in time maybe?
Good to catch up with you.

I'm up for a trip to Newhaven Fort, when were you thinking of going?
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Old 26-09-2019, 10:09 PM   #33
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Well I have no idea how to put pictures into a post...

It worked in the test area, honest!

http://www.ukmonster.co.uk/monster/s...ad.php?t=57814
The pictures capture the day a treat.
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Old 27-09-2019, 08:20 PM   #34
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Re Newhaven Fort, I will look at dates and also see if there are any events on at all.
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Old 01-10-2019, 05:48 PM   #35
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I swear I left it safe and sound!

My pal Martyn from the NOC has sent me this news from the Lighthouse Trust.

https://i.postimg.cc/85ZbR9dL/half-bungalow.jpg (Oh dear! Doesn't seem to be possible to post photos on the Suffolk Forum?)

Following extremely High Tides and strong winds over the weekend of the 28th/29th September, the Bunglalow just below the Lighthouse has been seriously undermined and much of it has collapsed.

It is the current intention of Orfordness Lighthouse Trust to fence off the collapsed building and to demolish it as soon as can be arranged. This is to prevent the building being a danger to curious visitors and can also serve as an extra defence to the Lighthouse structure and the Oil Store.

The bungalow was built in the late 19th Century as outhouses to the cottages that stood either side of the Lighthouse. The Lighthouse was automated and the cottages were demolished in the 1960s and thereafter the Bungalow served as a bunk house for visiting engineers.

The Bungalow has been undermined in the past and the Orfordness Lighthouse Trust has carried out remedial work to shore up the shingle underneath it. Now with almost no beach in front of the Lighthouse this was no longer feasible.

The structure of the Lighthouse itself is still sturdy. Internal examinations of brickwork in the cellar (including a diamond drill through the 2m thick foundations) have proved that the bricks that make up its structure have not been infiltrated by damp and nor does the building show any cracks that would suggest the Lighthouse has been undermined. The temporary defences (The Geo-Textile "sausages") put down year after year by Orfordness Lighthouse Trust have worked well. The overall level of the beach is far lower and high-water mark far beyond the promontory the Lighthouse sits on.

What Next?

For several reasons, including the nature of the fabric of the Lighthouse itself and the protected land it stands on and the nature of the erosion, we have long known that preserving Orfordness Lighthouse where she stands was only a short term aim.

Because of the very mobile nature of the shingle we have always caveated that a bad storm with winds in a certain direction could threaten the structure. Every winter since 2013 this has been possible. We have in fact been quite lucky that big storms, like the Beast from the East, have actually deposited shingle on the beach. We don't know how long we'll continue to be so lucky! The collapse of the Bungalow is a timely reminder that the sea and weather can undermine our assumptions and expectations just as quickly as they have the Bungalow.

We have no intention of letting the Lighthouse “fall into the sea” and never have. It has always been the stated aim of Orfordness Lighthouse Trust to keep the building standing and open to visitors for as long as possible, then to preserve the artefacts after that. We communicated recently that the lack of beach in front of the Lighthouse means that we can add no more temporary defences and therefore that dismantling the Lighthouse would have to happen sooner rather than later.

We are very proud to have taken hundreds (if not thousands!) of visitors to Orfordness Lighthouse over the past 6 years and have been supported by kind donations by our visitors and supporters near and far.

We shall keep you up to date with our progress and plans over the coming months, as well as how the Lighthouse is doing over the winter.
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Old 24-02-2020, 07:45 PM   #36
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I've just had an update from the Orfordness Lighthouse Trust. I'm afraid it's rather sad news. No more trips to the lighthouse for us!
The structure has now been declared unsafe by the Suffolk County Council and they have ordered it's demolition.
To precis the very long mail; they have managed to get plant to the remote site and have demolished the Oil Store building, which itself was teetering, and used the rubble to protect the lighthouse from Storm Dennis. Many of the artefacts have been removed and the huge cast Bronze light room at the top is due to be removed by crane in the next few days. (weather permitting.)
The lighthouse now projects into the Sea, with the shoreline behind it.
I can't deny being very moved and sad by this. I'm just glad we got a crowd and went to see it last year. It was in fact the last but one trip to the lighthouse by the public.

Sorry I can't post pictures on this thread, I urge you to open the links to view the full drama.

This one needs no explanation really!
https://i.ibb.co/q19QPDK/undermined-1.png

This was taken on what was solid land when we last visited.
https://i.ibb.co/Syr5L3s/undermined-2.png

The view from the top of the lighthouse showing the undermined oil store building about to be pushed in front of the lighthouse to try and save it from the current storm. The Sea is to the right of the picture and you can see how far the beach has encroached.
https://i.ibb.co/RNCSGqt/undermined-3.png

I can forward the whole email to anyone interested if you pm me your address.
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Old 24-02-2020, 08:35 PM   #37
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End of an era...

There are a bunch of other youtube vids on the lighthouse, but this one is fairly recent.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhzzSOUgAZY
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Old 26-02-2020, 08:22 AM   #38
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Weather, eh? Sad to see it go.

One of my earliest memories is of visiting a lighthouse down in Dorset (I think: St Margaret's Bay or somesuch?) with my father, and I was very impressed with the facets of the light's lens and the mercury bath on which it rotated. Writing that last, I can barely believe it! I don't suppose lights are allowed to spin on evil elements now. Life was simpler then, and Monsters were definitely confined to stories. Don't mention under beds 'cos we lived in a shoe-box...

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Old 26-02-2020, 10:30 AM   #39
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I remember being given a palmful of Mercury in science class. Watching blobs of it wobble along the desk and smashing them with my fist, to watch smaller blobs shoot in all directions....Never did me any 'arm..

We could go and see Happisburgh Lighthouse later this year? This is a sister ship to Orford, built to the same design I believe. We can ride right up to this one and park at the bottom of it.
You can see an equally graphic display of coastal erosion from the top!

Anyone up for that?
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Old 26-02-2020, 09:59 PM   #40
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I remember being given a palmful of Mercury in science class. Watching blobs of it wobble along the desk and smashing them with my fist, to watch smaller blobs shoot in all directions....Never did me any 'arm..

We could go and see Happisburgh Lighthouse later this year? This is a sister ship to Orford, built to the same design I believe. We can ride right up to this one and park at the bottom of it.
You can see an equally graphic display of coastal erosion from the top!

Anyone up for that?
I'm game!

Time for a list me thinks.....

Mr Gazza.
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Old 27-02-2020, 08:10 AM   #41
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I'll get in touch with them and arrange a date.. Our calendar is quite full already, I reckon we are looking at September for that one?
DaveR and I tagged on to a Norton Owners run to the Lighthouse last year. It was a tenner a head for the tour if I recall.
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