"The searchlights swept the sea and the skies for maximum periods of three minutes, which came at irregular intervals between 30 seconds and 20 minutes..."

This excerpt is from a formerly classified CIA intelligence report describing searchlight activity from Ristna Cape, Estonia, in 1953. The military installation where these searchlights were based was formerly known as BS-42.

The prefix 'BS' stands for 'Beregovaia Storona' (Береговая сторона), meaning 'Coastal Defense' in Russian. Established in 1940, this site originally housed four 130mm B-13 guns, later expanding to include three 127mm guns from a former U.S. warship, along with numerous support bunkers and tunnels. However, in 1953, its most notable structure was added: a reinforced concrete fire control tower equipped with artillery radars and an optical 6-meter range finder.

Today, the Kalana fire control tower is in mixed condition, similar to the BS-26 Tahkuna tower. Time and rust have taken the first two flights of stairs, so makeshift wooden ladders must first be scaled to reach the original metal stairs above. Parts of the optical range finder remain, which, with a little effort, can still rotate slightly, allowing you, with the addition of imagination, a glimpse into how working life would have been in this tower decades ago.

Higher up, the tower’s true value can be seen with your own eyes, as it offers uninterrupted views over the treetops and out toward the Baltic Sea.