The Canadian Forces Station Bermuda, which opened in 1963 to fill a gap in high-frequency radio direction finding coverage in the Atlantic, is a victim of the end of the Cold War and fiscal pressures in Canada.

Today, the base will send a short and simple message out to other such stations that it will no longer be listening, a spokesman said. The base's radio role in search and rescue work will also end today.

The base at Daniel's Head has 88 military personnel and employs 28 Bermudian civilians.

The military and their families will leave a few at a time, and by late summer there will only be a caretaker presence. The base is to be vacated completely by the end of the year.

"I think everyone must be feeling somewhat sad,'' Commanding Officer Major Sam Gillespie said on Thursday. "There is a certain nostalgia -- the good times we've had here, the good relationships, the many friends we've made.'' At 11 a.m., the military, the civilians, their families, and a few special guests will gather on the lawn in front of the beach for a ceremony expected to last only 30 to 40 minutes.

Guests include the Governor Lord Waddington, Minister of Delegated and Legislative Affairs Sir John Sharpe, Canadian Commissioner for Bermuda representative Mr. Howard Spunt, Canadian Forces Communication Command Commander Brigadier-General Robert Martineau, and Canadian Forces Supplementary Radio System Commander Colonel Percy Tappin.