![]() ![]() "The actual physical structure has four legs that are buried several hundred feet into the bedrock and was built in the nature of an oil derrick, from the Gulf Coast area. Richard Neal works on a generator at the Frying Pan Tower. If you just go to the southeast of there, about 34 miles - as they would say a ‘fir piece’ - you will actually see a strange little oil derrick facility sitting there in the middle of the ocean, out of sight of land." "If you look at the coast of North Carolina, you’ll see a couple of bumps out there – one of them being Bald Head Island. Give us a better sense of where the Frying Pan Tower is, in relation to the mainland. ![]() It’s starting to pick up a little bit, but there’s still a little bit of daylight even though it’s getting a little overcast." "Actually the wind is blowing pretty constant. WUNC’s Dave DeWitt spoke with Richard Neal about his unique tower and what it's like to watch a storm from the middle of the ocean: Neal bought the tower from the government in a 2010 auction and has converted it into a bed and breakfast. Richard Neal owns the Frying Pan Tower, a former Coast Guard Light Station 34 miles south of Wilmington, surrounded only by the open ocean. One North Carolinian will be closer to the storm than anyone else, and he’s doing it by choice. It will come closest to North Carolina sometime overnight Saturday and into Sunday. However, the company failed to make the down-payment and subsequently, the tower returned to government hands and was sold again in May 2010 for $85,000 to Neal who plans to turn it into a bed and breakfast.Hurricane Matthew continues to roar up the eastern seaboard. The Coast Guard considered demolishing the light for use as an artificial reef, but the tower was instead purchased by South Carolina diving and research firm Shipwrecks, Inc. The tower was replaced by a buoy in 2003 and no longer serves as an aid to navigation. However, the platform cannot support a helicopter landing and the ladder to the light tower has been destroyed. The light tower is potentially available by helicopter and boat. The subfloor is a living area of approximately 5,000 square feet (460 m2) that includes five bedrooms, kitchen, office, storage area, recreation area and toilet facilities. The 80-foot (24 m) light tower marks the shoals at the confluence of the Cape Fear River and the Atlantic Ocean. ![]() The light tower is a steel oil drilling platform, known as a “Texas Tower” on top of four steel legs that has been modified to be used as a lighthouse. The Frying Pan Shoals Light Tower is a decommissioned lighthouse located approximately 25 miles (40 km) southeast of Bald Head Island, North Carolina. The tower was built in 1966 and was deactivated in 2003. It has seven bedrooms, a kitchen, a recreation room and helicopter landing platform. The tower is 25 miles from Wilmington and is more than 60 feet above the water. Coast Guard post into a bed-and-breakfast. Neal plans to turn the 44-year-old former U.S. A man plans to turn an abandoned light tower off the North Carolina coast into a high-seas bed-and-breakfast.ĥ0-year-old Richard Neal of Mint Hill bought the Frying Pan Shoals Light Tower in a federal government auction in May for $85,000. ![]()
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