Tobago's iconic Fort King George lighthouse refurbished

AFTER being out of commission for more than two decades, the lighthouse at historic Fort King George, Scarborough, Tobago, has been refurbished.

The iconic structure, one of the island’s most prominent landmarks, was handed over to the Tobago House of Assembly (THA) during a recommissioning ceremony on January 13.

The project, which was managed by the Eco-Industrial Development Company of Tobago (E-IDCOT), is being done in two phases.

The first phase, which has been completed, includes the refurbishment of the lighthouse and beacon while phase two, which is yet to begin, involves the construction of an observation deck. A new beacon is expected to be installed in February.

Delivering the feature address, Chief Secretary Farley Augustine said the establishment of a Department of Antiquities within the Division of Tourism, Culture, Antiquities and Transportation was deliberate.

“I have a serious concern, and that is why the Department of Antiquities was formed. I have a concern that we just may not know what we have in so far as our artefacts.

“And that if we don’t know what we actually have, then it means that it’s easy for somebody to come in here, pick up something, put it in a suitcase – because some valuable artefacts can fit in a pocket – and go away with it, and no one will ever know that that which was of great value was once lodged somewhere on the island,” he said.

Augustine said a part of the department’s work involves doing an inventory of the artefacts across the island, “to protect and catalogue them and use it as a marketing tool on the island and see how best we can monetise our artefactual assets.”