Photos: INMR ©
Colossal Towers in Spain Have Become Landmarks
The southern coastal city of Cadiz is from where Columbus set out on his epic voyage of discovery in 1492. Had he departed some four and a half centuries later, his ships would have sailed by two transmission towers of equally epic proportions.
The pair of 158 m high structures, built to support the more than 1 km bay crossing of a double circuit 132 kV line during the late 1950s, were actually the unintended result of limitations in Spanish steel manufacturing at the time. Designed by Italian, Alberto Toscano, each hollow conical mast with 20.7 m diameter at base and 6 m at the top consists of galvanized steel sections held together by diagonal girders. Inside, a helical staircase ascends to the crossbar, although an external elevator was also added for those not inclined to make the dizzying climb. While massive in proportion, the net result of its profile and airy interior makes it as aesthetic as it is functional, with an effect reminiscent of the Eiffel Tower.
Climbing by stairs or elevator is equally impressive. Strain assembly at Matagorda Tower side.
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