Land purchased to keep lighthouse from falling into sea

The historic Cape Bear Lighthouse in southeastern Prince Edward Island is being saved from toppling into the sea. The lighthouse is currently perchedjust two metres from the bank.

The lighthouse has been a subject of concern for years. The bank had been eroding away at a rate of about one metre per year.

Cape Bear Lighthouse and Marconi Station Incorporated, the group that has been overseeing its restoration, has purchased 50 hectares of land about 400 metres east of the current location.

The corporation wants to develop the site into an historic attraction.

"It's about the only thing we have left down in southern Kings County. It's one of the last symbols," said group president Wallace Jorden.

"We don't want to lose it over the bank by default. We want to preserve it and to develop it and to make it to be something that people will look forward to."

The group says it isstill negotiating with the federal department of Fisheries and Oceans to turn the lighthouse over.

The lighthouse was built in 1886. It now houses the Marconi Museum. The Marconi Station at Cape Bear used to be next tothe lighthouse andwas the first in Canada to receive the distress signal from the Titanic. A station in Newfoundland had heard it earlier, butwas not part of Canada at the time.

The move is planned for early October.