Fort Drum (El Fraile Island)

         Fort Drum (El Fraile Island), also known as "the concrete battleship,” is a heavily fortified island situated at the mouth of manila bay in the philippines, due south of corrigidor Island. The reinforced concrete reforts shapebavd like a battleship, was built by the United States in 1909 as one of the harbor defenses at the wider South Channel entrance to the bay during theAmerican colonial period. It was captured and occupied by the Japanese during World War II, and was recaptured by the U.S. after igniting oil and gasoline in the fort, leaving it permanently out of commission. The now abandoned fort was named after Brigadier General Richard C. Drum, who served with distinction during theMexican-American War and the American Civil War and died on October 15, 1909, the fort's year of construction. The island and the other former harbor defenses of Manila Bay fall under the jurisdiction of the City of Cavite in Cavite province

Construction

Construction began in April 1909 and lasted for five years. The rocky island was leveled by U.S. Army engineers and then was built up with thick layers of steel-reinforced concrete into a massive structure roughly resembling a battleship, 350 ft (110 m) long, 144 ft (44 m) wide, and with a top deck 40 ft (12 m) above water at mean low tide.^[9] The 14-inch (360 mm) M1909 guns and their two custom built turrets, dubbed Batteries Marshall and Wilson, were delivered and installed by 1916. The secondary 6-inch (150 mm) M1908MII guns, Batteries Roberts and McCrea, were installed the same year.

Searchlights, anti-aircraft batteries, and a 60-foot (18 m) lattice-style fire control tower were mounted on the fort's upper surface. The living quarters for the approximately 240 officers and enlisted men along with the power generators, plotting rooms and ammunition magazines were located deep inside the fort.

The fort today

                       The ruins of Fort Drum, including its disabled turrets and 14-inch (360 mm) guns, remain at the mouth of Manila Bay, abandoned since World War II.The fort is being desecrated by looters since the 1970s seeking scrap metal inside the fort for reselling later. The activity is still going on according to a report in 2009.

A automated light was recently installed by the Philippine Coast Guard on the top deck for guiding ships entering the South Channel of Manila Bay.

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