CENTENARY TOWER


Grid Reference -37.840278, 140.756111 (GDA 94)
Department Green Triangle forest Products
Work Centre ?
District ?
Grading ?
Elevation (ASL) 190m
Height 25m
Construction Brick
Cabin size ?
Public access to site Yes
In use since 19?? -

Please click on thumbnails for enlargements

All photos found on the web from various sites. B/W photo is from 1959
Please contact us. re acknowledgement

In November 2021, the Green Triangle Fire Alliance installed a camera on top of the tower. For the related article in The Border Watch newspaper, please click here.

We received the following information in April 2022 from Anthony Walsh from the Green Triangle Forest Industries Hub:
It's a bit of a mixed arrangement with the Centenary Tower. One of the GTFA members, Green Triangle Forest Products, has had a person spot from the tower on high risk days. It was not be staffed as regularly as other towers in the region. The tower has been opportunistically used for fire detection, it was built as a commemorative tower, not a fire tower. Spotting occurred either from the roof which only has a low balustrade or through the windows a level down. The spotter was exposed to the elements on the roof and was required to wear a fall arresting harness. This was not ideal so a camera was installed this season which allowed monitoring from this site on the high risk days when it would have been staffed under the old arrangement as well as on lower fire risk days.

Below is an extract from the Fire Tower chapter of a book, Forestry Tales, that was written by Michael H. Bleby OAM. It is used with permission, thanks Michael.
The Centenary tower on the rim of the Mt Gambier volcano, built in 1901, had been used as a fire lookout for many years. It was a key source of information with a clear 360 degree view over the whole of the southern portion of the Region. Responsibility for manning this well located but unusual landmark for a fire lookout, was with the forest company Green Triangle Forest Products. The degree of cooperation of all the forest owners with respect to fire detection and suppression was exemplary.

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