Hood Point

LIGHTHOUSE DETAILS

Name	Hood Point
Structure	19 metre round masonry tower painted white
Other Features
Date Installed	4 June 1895
Description	Hood Point lighthouse is situated on the outskirts of East London on the east coast of South Africa. It is apparently one of the more popular lighthouses for light keepers as it is situated right next to a golf course. Hood Point was the second navigational aid erected in the vicinity of East London in 1895. East London has often been referred to as the Port of wrecks as this coast has seen more than 85 wrecks. Hotels, streets and beaches have had their names taken from wrecks such as the Orient Beach, the Kennaway Hotel and Bonanza Street. Probably the most unusual cargo ever carried was that of the Lady Kennaway, which brought 157 Irish brides to marry the men of the Cape Frontier. Luckily this precious cargo landed before the ship was wrecked. With an optic apparatus that produces 6 000 000 candelas and a sea mile range of 31 sea miles, the coastline that is covered is quite considerable. It is a coastline that has seen one of the worlds greatest maritime mysteries unfold; the disappearance without trace of the 9 300 ton Waratah in 1909 with her 211 passengers. Many people believe she was hit by a giant wave, capsized and disappeared. Recently the Oceanos, a Greek passenger liner which also met its demise makes the freak wave theory more plausible. Hood Point has seen its fair share of action, but East London is also home to the discovery of a living Coelacanth, a pre historic fish thought to be dead for 80 million years. East London also has the only example of a Dodo egg.

LIGHT DETAILS

Light Type	Revolving Electric
Light Character	Group flashing 4 flashes every 40 seconds
Light Range	31 sea miles
Light Power	6 000 000 CD
Height of focal Plane	55 metres above high water

POSITION

Position

33 02 25.96 South, 27 53 55.00 East