A 147-year old lighthouse and bed and breakfast on an island in the Bay has been without power since the first of the month after an undersea power cable was damaged, calling to question the inn’s ability to survive.
The only way to get the East Brother Light Station and Victorian Bed & Breakfast Inn on San Francisco Bay is by boat from Richmond, and the only way to get the boat moored at the island it is on is by using an electrical winch to raise it up eight feet.
Since April 1, the only way the winch will operate is by receiving electricity, but East Brother light keeper Desiree Heveroh said the 100-year-old generator is on its last legs.
“I can only run this generator for one hour in the morning and one hour at night,” Heveroh told KCBS Radio.
Some donated diesel fuel from the U.S. Coast Guard are the only things keeping the island lit up.
“I have to plan what I’m going to do with my hour of power,” she said, adding that the power outage was caused by the undersea power cable.
“Down at the water, it’s split open,” she said.
Desiree said will cost $150,000. The non-profit which operates the island does not have the money, and neither does the Coast Guard. With the Bed and Breakfast shut down, it’s already in the red.
The Coast Guard will try to use solar panels to keep the light going, but without electricity the charming bed and breakfast might go dark.
“We were gearing up to reopen when the announcement came that California’s going to open June 15, we were so excited,” Heveroh said. "And now we’re unsure.”
The light from the lighthouse still guides mariners, as it has since 1875. It was built in 1873 and is the oldest Wood Frame Lighthouse left in the United States. It is also listed on the National Register of Historic Places and a Registered California Historic Landmark.
A GoFundMe has been set up to help save the light station, and has raised almost $58,000, so far.