The Abandoned South Fremantle Power Station

There are places we visit in our lives that leave a tangible mark on us. An impression that becomes a pull; a yearning to go back over and over again. It was nearly 10 years ago that I randomly found myself walking along the shores of North Coogee Beach, by chance lifting my gaze to the see the looming beauty of the abandoned power station that still sits there decades after its demise. I remember thinking back then that the building was unique, placed so close on the shores of the beach with large airy windows broken by vandalism. The way the light shone through intrigued me. I instantly wanted to be inside, traipsing around looking for an adventure or a sense of a history in the giant space of emptiness. I stood on the outskirts of the security fence, “Do Not Enter” signs holding me back, gazing at the way the sea water collected in the basement of the building and contemplating what the building was used for.

Skip forward 10 years year in time….and we are struggling through the sandy shores, wind blowing a gale in our faces and outlined in the dying sun rays stands before us the building that has been echoing out to me all that time. A lot of people would argue abandoned equates to ugly. To me it is means ethereal, strange and confronting. There is something innately sad about buildings that have been neglected and something definitely eery. The Power Station is the epitome of this juxtaposition. From a distance it looms large, like a giant hotel waiting to greet passengers on ships sailing in from the horizon. On closer inspection, its majesty is not lost but its use becomes clear. There are no mysteries in its design and scope.

Now heritage listed, South Fremantle Power Station was a former coal-fired electric power generating station. Officially opening 27 June 1951, the station was the second and largest purpose-built thermal power station in Western Australia. Employing over 250 workers during the 1950′s a special bus route was directed to neighbouring Hilton and Fremantle suburbs for station workers. With the decline of coal as an economical power source, the station closed in 1985 and was stripped of all its machinery, leaving the building facade to remain.

Some mythical legends and straight forward facts are whispered in Perth circles about the building. Haunted, a haven for drug addicts who live in the tunnels that run below the station and a place for devil worshipping. According to one source, four murders have taken place in the lower levels of the building and before the internal stairs were removed apparently many suicides took place. The tunnels are definitely real, with many other expedition seekers venturing down to find that government authorities have put up blockades. Building even more suspense and intrigue on what lies beyond and where the tunnels lead.

Recently, media coverage suggested that the site was being considered for an Arts/Cultural Centre with the focus on a redevelopment of the site. Regardless, viewing the amount of damage and graffiti to the site and the plethora of innate and inexplicable love I have for this building I hope that some respect is given to its heritage and design.

Although you can’t comfortably or legally experience the building itself, take a stroll along North Coogee Beach. From that distance, with the ocean behind you and the station in front of you, you’ll respect the immensity and magnificence of this abandoned historical site.

Standing like a ghost on the edge of the sea.