Fire Lookout Towers North Carolina

There are 210 fire lookout towers known in North Carolina. Each of which is assigned per county. And though North Carolina’s fire lookout towers serve for safety purposes, these towers have also become means of seeing the beauty the state offers. In fact, an author has already published a book about the lookout towers of North Carolina. It includes historical information about the tower and the mountain where it stands, hiking trails, maps, routes, directions, and distances. All these are helpful to North Carolina travelers. You may wonder why North Carolina maintains 210 fire lookout towers. Well, it is already an operational procedure and normal to have one per county in every state. First and foremost, a fire lookout tower is a tall building made of wood or steel usually located on the peak of a mountain. It also serves as a shelter for a fire lookout whose task is to seek out fires in the wilderness. Its high location is a necessity in viewing possible fires from a distance and range.

The picture above is an example of a steel-made fire lookout tower. Steel towers can differ in size and height and they could be very sturdy but may bend in the wind. However, they are constantly checked for security and safety so there’s no need for much worrying. There had been many fire lookout towers wrecked all due to abandonment and low maintaining budget but North Carolina’s are always active and supported primarily for the safety of the residences and the entire county as well. Other states also ensure their own towers to function through assigning trustworthy, vigilant-eyed fire lookouts to detect fires. It is still believed that this measure is safe, reliable, and prevents delay of putting off a fire that may drift to other places, saving lives, homes, and structures ahead.

It was supposedly the great fire in 1910 that provoked the government with the support of county councils to build fire lookout towers in all parts of the United States. Presumably, the forest fire then was too large that it spread through out the states of Washington, Idaho, and Montana. This doomed occurrence paved the way to creating fire rules, organizations, policies, and practices believed to be very useful up to this time. Safety has become a major priority in the states and the towers symbolize it.

Although technology has improved and the towers have taken a back seat, its purposes have not been defeated yet. Aircraft, radios and cell phones may be reliable channels of communication but seeing the fire from atop a tower manages fires in a rapid manner. Fire lookout towers still are time and life savers. And possibly, visiting a fire lookout tower is a way to appreciate its lofty structure that was purposely made to save environments and people’s lives.