Is it still standing in Sanibel? Landmark a symbol among the Hurricane Ian devastation
The destruction in Southwest Florida has been seared into our minds. The splintered buildings. The washed-out roads. The torn lives.
The barrier islands of Lee County were hit especially hard, as Hurricane Ian made its deadly assault across the coast and state.
Sanibel Island, with its crumpled causeway, has been severed from the mainland. Whatever businesses and homes survived the onslaught are now isolated.
But at least one Sanibel landmark appears to have survived: the iconic lighthouse.
The 1884 iron lighthouse was one of the first ones to rise on the Gulf Coast and north of the Florida Keys. The state of the historic keeper’s quarters isn’t clear. Photos after Ian don’t show the quarters, most recently used by federal wildlife managers.
READ MORE: What does Sanibel Island look like after Hurricane Ian? See for yourself
Both lighthouse and quarters were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
According to the Florida archives, the 104-foot lighthouse was completed in 1884 after 51 years of requests for a navigational aid.
The lighthouse has been a symbol that watches over the island ever since.
And it still is watching.
