A construction company out of Barry’s Bay is installing two new lighthouses in the Ottawa Valley. General Manager of Merol Constructors, Joseph Olsheski, says they are replacing the lighthouse at the Pembroke Marina and Sandhills in Constance Bay. Olsheski says both structures were damaged by the flooding this spring. He expects the new structures to be up by the end of October or early November. Olsheski says the Pembroke lighthouse was almost 30-years old and scheduled to be replaced soon anyways.
Olsheski says they removed the old lighthouse in Pembroke sometime in June. He expects them to complete the footing where the new structure will go sometime this week. Olsheski says the Canadian Coast Guard will bring in the lighthouse by helicopter and install it. Since the Ottawa River falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries, the project was paid for by the federal government. He says the new lighthouse in Pembroke will look very similar to the old one.
(Photo of lighthouse replacement by: Mike Rielly/Facebook)