Left: The communications tower two days before the windstorm. Right: the aftermath. Images: L-Pete Lyons/Facebook. R-Keith Carson/Facebook.
The wind was absolutely howling on February 25 at the peak of Maine’s Sugarloaf Mountain—so much so that the communications tower blew over.
“It’s been a pretty wild day on top of the mountain today, to say the least,” Sugarloaf wrote on Facebook. “A lot of you have probably seen these images going around this evening and we can confirm they’re real. This tower was blown over in a gust of wind earlier today.”
As the mountain doesn’t use the tower for anything all that important, business went on as usual, albeit with a bit of a different view.
“Sugarloaf doesn’t own or operate any of the communication towers on our summit,” Sugarloaf officials explained. “We lease space out to various companies who manage a number of towers. We don’t use them in any operational capacity, so this shouldn’t affect mountain operations in any noticeable way. It’s a good reminder though of how intense conditions on our summit can get sometimes, and why it’s always best to heed ski patrol closures on the summit at all times.”
According to Keith Carson, a meteorologist at WCSH/WLBZ, the “anemometer broke before the max wind gust was reached, but it was likely in excess of 100 MPH.”
