Sémaphore de la Coubre, Vessel traffic service in La Coubre, France

The Sémaphore de la Coubre was a 37-metre tower built in 1990 at Les Mathes, in Charente-Maritime, on the German bunker Riesel of the Atlantic Wall, which served as its foundation. The cylindrical shaft carried alternating white and faded pinkish-red bands, ringed by narrow white galleries, and ended in a white glass lantern with a domed top. It was inaugurated on 28 February 1990, abandoned in 1998 and demolished in February 2020.

The Sémaphore de la Coubre replaced a semaphore built in 1857 that the advancing sea had made unsafe. The new 37-metre tower was erected in 1990 on the Riesel bunker, a 1945 German navy command post of four levels and 8.90 metres, whose fourth floor was cut away to seat it. Inaugurated on 28 February 1990, it was abandoned in 1998 and, badly degraded, demolished in February 2020.

The tower's name comes from the Pointe de la Coubre; the site is also called sémaphore des Mathes after the commune of Les Mathes. Its striped white and pinkish-red shaft, seen in photographs, stood above the Riesel bunker until its demolition in February 2020.

The tower no longer exists: it was demolished in February 2020, so there is nothing to visit at the site. Its concrete foundation, the German bunker Riesel, remains in place at Les Mathes, near the Coubre lighthouse and forest. The structure stood 37 metres tall and was abandoned in 1998.

The station uses an automated identification system that captures and processes ship details and locations automatically. This technology allows operators to manage communication with multiple vessels at the same time and maintain traffic safety effectively.