The concrete water catchment area at the abandoned U.S. Coast Guard South Caicos LORAN station The water collection area at the LORAN Station, South Caicos.
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The South Caicos U.S. Coast Guard LORAN Station

Note: This is not an official tourist attraction. There are dangers present, such as sharp rusted metal and the risk of the collapse of concrete and metal structural elements. This article is provided for general educational purposes only.
The barracks and office of the old U.S. Coast Guard South Caicos LORAN station
Abandoned buildings at the LORAN Station, South Caicos.
For a U.S. Coast Guard veteran’s personal account of life at the South Caicos LORAN station, see www.bliley.net. You may also be interested in Grand Turk's U.S. Navy NAVFAC 104 Base.

Found on the northern point of South Caicos at Plandon Cay Cut, the abandoned South Caicos U.S. Coast Guard LORAN Station is a very interesting site.

Completed in 1959, this base was part of a global network of thousands of similar sites which allowed for global ship and aircraft navigation by triangulating low-frequency radio signals. LORAN stations operated as either masters or slaves, with the master sending out a signal to which the slave stations responded to. Response timings between stations were accurately measured and vessels would listen in and make calculations to determine location. Although not entirely gone yet, LORAN in all its different variants has been almost completely replaced by satellite GPS systems.

When operating, the site had an expansive concrete water collection hill, two large steel water storage tanks, an antenna tower, and barracks and operations buildings.

Vintage photo of the crew of the U.S. Coast Guard South Caicos LORAN base in 1968
Vintage photo of the U.S. Coast Guard South Caicos LORAN station during its days of operation
The rainwater catchment field at the South Caicos LORAN station
Above: The crew of the South Caicos LORAN station in 1968. Photo courtesy of and copyright of U.S. Coast Guard veteran Charles A. Bliley (www.bliley.net).   Top right:  Top left:  The LORAN station during its heyday. Photo courtesy of and copyright of U.S. Coast Guard veteran Charles A. Bliley (www.bliley.net).   Bottom right:  Top right:  The abandoned United States Coast Guard LORAN station, South Caicos.  

Shut-down of the LORAN-A Network

The South Caicos LORAN-A station ceased to operate at the end of 1980. At this time, many of the Atlantic and Caribbean stations were shut down by the U.S. Coast Guard when a change was made to use the updated and longer-range LORAN-C (which did not require as many ground stations). The South Caicos site was officially decommissioned in 1981.

Current Site

Today the site is largely overgrown by low scrubby vegetation, the barracks and living quarters are empty shells, the radio tower has collapsed, and the water storage tanks are decomposing with rust. Feral donkeys are the only regular visitors.

Plandon Cay Cut

South Caicos is a very scenic island with many beautiful landscapes, but the view to the west off the high ground near the LORAN station is probably the most impressive on the island. On a sunny day, a tremendous range of blues, turquoises, and greens can be seen in the water here at Plandon Cay Cut, Bell Sound, and around the small islands between South Caicos and East Caicos.