Richard Neal is the owner of Frying Pan Tower, a former Coast Guard light station more than 30 miles off the coast of North Carolina. The tower stands about 100 feet above the ocean and can only be reached by boat or helicopter. Neal purchased the tower from the Coast Guard in 2004 when it became obsolete as a lighthouse. Now it is used as a bed and breakfast. With Hurricane Matthew closing in in 2016, Neal and a few guests decided to remain at the tower to ride out the storm.
Neal told the Associated Press, "I can honestly say that this is a solid old beast... We knew all the tower would do is shake and leak." For more on the story, click to wtop.com.