Friday, September 16, 1994 — North Shore News - 3 Be Fazical NEWS photo Mike Wakefield POINT ATKINSON Lighthouse will be officially designated a National Historic Site Saturday, after guiding ships through the inlet for over 100 years. Vi POINT ATKINSON Lighthouse will be designated a national historic site on Sunday. By Kate Zimmerman News Reporter “L think it’s an extremely impor- tant step forward,” said Point Atkinson lightkeeper Don Graham, the author of several books on the subject of lighthouses. "Ultimately it will lead to the development of Point Atkinson as an interpretive centre for the history of navigation on Canada’s Pacific Coust. “Myself and other people who are interested in this project foresee the restoration of the tower and light apparatus as working exum- ples of turn-of-the-century, state-of- the-art aids to naval technology. We hope (o see outside and indoor displays and other interpretive means developed over the years.” Situated in Lighthouse Park. the striking red-domed lighthouse attracts thousands of visitors a year. It is operated by owo lightkeepers and their families, who not only maintain the building and grounds and provide weather reports, but also keep eagle eyes out for boaters. swimmers and windsurfers in trou- ble. Rocky Point Atkinson itself was called sk‘ itwitsut by the Squamish people before it was renamed by Captain George Vancouver in 1792 when he sailed into the Burrard Inlet. The site won out over Passage Island as an ideal location for the original lighthouse, built in 1874 as CALL US: 983-2208 i? The Canadian Coast Guard wants to leave the building to its own devices, removing resident lightkeepers. “Apiomatic lighting THE COAST Guard’s attempt to autemate B.C. lighthouses continues to be tossed about ia stormy seas. " Information recently obtained ‘under the Access to Information Act revealed that between 1988 and 1991 the three automated lightstations which operate on B.C.’s north coast had been out: of commission 119 hours. ‘The report said the West Coast’s navigational lights and feg signals failed 259 times in a 12- month period ending June 30, 1993 and were out of service a total cf 755 hours. Yet the coast guard; which hopes to replace resident lightkeepers with machinery over the ‘next two to five years, insists that automation will have an infallibility rate of 99.9%. In July, the coast guard and lightkeepers par- ticipated in 2 three-day workshop in Victoria at which the lightkeepers pressed the coast guard to justify this figure. The coast guard’s response was tbat lights and foghorns are considered to be in perfect working order unless they are reported “out.” If an accident occurs and those inycived either do not survive or do not formally report the absence of warning signs or “system availability” through a notice to shipping, the coast guard would still consider those tights and foghorns to bei in perfect working order. : Each automated main light has an emergency back-up. According te the coast guard, if a main light fails and the emergency back-up comes on, - that is not considered a main light failure. At the workshop, lightkeepers pointed out that there is a crucial difference between the main light and the emergency light. The main light is an identifier of the particular lighthouse; the number of flashes it gives in a cer- tain period allows mariners to determine their bearings. Emergency lights, on the other hand, are generic, and have a third of the range of a main fight. Foghorns also have a unique characteristic which help mariners get their bearings. They can- not he automated. Nor can the gathering of infor- mation on aviation weathers, essential in a province where most air traffic travels from one body of water to another, rather than from air- port to airport. Lightkeepers claim that the “consultation” workshop in Victoria turned out to be a brain- picking session wt which the coast guard tried to get recommendations from lightkeepers on how they could best be replaced by automation. part of the British military defence plans. It also served to guide ships in their passage to and from the port. The light tower thai stands on the point now replaced the original in 1911. Its designation as @ nation- al historic site comes during North Shore Heritage Weekend. [tis the third Eghthouse in the province to be so honored. “Having it designated a national historic site is most fitting for one of the Lower Mainland’s most prominent sites.” said West Vancouver Mayor Mark Sager, pointing out that the picturesque Poiat Atkinson lighthouse is fre- quently featured in photographs of the Vancouver area. “LP think its just marvellous,” said lan Macdonald, president of the West Vancouver Historical Society. “The lighthouse and the park are a big part of West Vancouver and always have been.” On Thursday afternoon the soci- ety installed a cut-granite plaque commemorating the event. The public ceremony will begin at 1 p.m. on Sunday, with the unveiling of a plaque, speeches by Graham, Sager and others. THIS WEEK’S QUESTION: How do you spend your time when you’re stuck in traffic? Ports police scuffle with boaters ALLEGEDLY DRUNK boaters struggled with Ports Canada Police on Sept. 10 as they were being removed from their vessel about 1.6 kilome- tres (one mile) off Dundarave. Ports Canada Police (PCP) Cpl LM. Whitington said bwo separate scuffles with police ensued after PCP investigated the alleged impaired men aboard the vessel. The responding officers called in a larger PCP vessel, Nahnitch, to assist in arresting the individuals who were described by police us aggres- sive and belligerent. Three of the men were eventually jailed for being drunk in a public place. Their names were not available. The boat operator, 29-year- old John Ringham, of North Vancouver, is charged with impaired operation of a motor vessel in connection with the incident. PCP were tipped that a pleasure craft with five allegedly intoxicated men aboard was seen leaving the False Creek area. Witnesses said one of the boaters had been pulled back aboard the five-metre (17- foot) vessel after falling over- board. The vessel was located off West Vancouver at about 7, p.m., according to a PCP spokesman. Marine units from PCP and the Vancouver Police were assisted with radar tracking by the coast guard vessel traffic centre to locate the boat. CADRE index @ Classified. BE COMICS... eects 22 B Crime Alert... BI Crossword....cscceeees 37 M@ Home & Garden... .15 BB Tosights... eet eee 6 8 Trevor Lautens.. & BA MaiIDOX eee eeceeeee 7 13 14 22 Saturday: sunny High 21°C. Low 10°C Canadian Publications Mail Sales Product Agreement No. 0087238