Ancient mariners were guided by fires built on hilltops. The world’s first recorded lighthouse was the Pharos Lighthouse in Alexandria, Egypt. Built in 280 BC, the Pharos Lighthouse was more than 450 feet tall and had a giant statue of Poseidon (the Greek god of the sea) at the top. A huge bonfire was lit every night at the top of the tower and was visible from more than thirty miles away! The Pharos Lighthouse was so huge that it was named one the Seven Wonders of the ancient world.
In the Asian seas, Chittagong has been a thriving seaport since ancient times. It had its glorious times during the 9th century under the Arabs and later, with the arrival of Europe in the subcontinent during the 15th century. However, the port had no lighthouse of its own in those days and sailors had to rely on other alternative methods like stars and raising fires on hilltops.
During the British era, the port became nicer than before but it still missed a reliable navigational system. A cyclone and tidal bore in 1822 caused huge destruction to the coastal part of the Bay of Bengal. As a result, many Chars or alluvial lands rose in the sea near the port which caused problems to the local and foreign vessels. So, the then British Government decided to establish a lighthouse and, in 1846 under the supervision of British captain Hare and at the instructions of Engineer JH Tugud, built a 40-meter tower at Kutubdia, 25 miles to the south from Chittagong, which is surrounded by water on three sides. The revolving lamp was installed later in 1892. In later years, other lighthouses were erected at Saint Martin, Cox’s Bazar, Norman’s Point and Patenga. The flickers of the lamps can be seen from about 25-35km distance in the deep sea.
Usually, a ship from the outside world bound for the Chittagong port today first meets the lighthouse of Saint Martin which marks the entrance into the Bangladeshi territorial water. Following the route, the ship will eventually meet Kutubdia lighthouse and then Norman’s Point situated at the Parkir Char in Anwara. The lighthouse then leads the ship’s way to the Chittagong port.
The port, particularly its marine department, maintains and runs the operations at Patenga and the Norman’s Point lighthouse. The automated Kutubdia lighthouse needs no external operator, however, has few staff including the light keeper. The lighthouses at Saint Martin, Kutubdia and Cox’s Bazar are operated by the Mercantile Marine Department.
Both Patenga, at the estuary of the Karnaphuli and Norman’s Point lighthouses were built during the British era. There were days when ships used to be guided by hazak lights fuelled by burnt oil. Today they have solar powered rotating LED lights that can be seen from a distance of over 20 nautical miles. Light at Norman’s Point emits white beams every 10 seconds while light at Patenga emits red beams. The lights turn on as soon as the evening gets down and dim out with the spark of the first light in the morning irrespective of the foggy winter or the heavy monsoon periods. Radar beacon system with separate codes has been introduced to the facilities in 2008 which can notify the radar of the presence of any incoming ship. The ships enter the Karnaphuli channel following the two beams from the two lighthouses standing on the banks of the estuary.
These lighthouses have been serving the ships for hundreds of years by providing the essential guiding lights and helping ships enter the Chittagong port.
This article was published in Bandarbarta- a monthly premier Bengali magazine on maritime.
