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KKOB 770 Tower Collapse

SomeRadioGuy

SomeRadioGuy

20 years ago yesterday, the AM tower was struck by a hot air balloon that got stuck. TODAY, a hot air balloon hit the tower, causing it to collapse.

abqraw.com

Balloon Crashes into Radio Tower; Balloonists Okay, Tower Collapsed - ABQ RAW

Albuquerque - Around 8:55 AM, a call came into 911 about a balloon crashing into the KKOB radio tower near 2nd St NW and Diers Rd. NW. The exact address is 10511 2ND ST NW. Twenty years ago on Thursday, the Smokey Bear balloon also crashed into this tower. The balloonists that hit the tower
abqraw.com abqraw.com
 
Off-topic, but does nobody know how to pull the video files directly off of a security camera system? Almost every time I see footage from one on the news, it's from somebody aiming a hand-held camera at its screen.
 
It's a developing news story right now but 770 is off the air. Broadcasts on 96.3 are still going and the FM signal has also been their brand for almost five years so those nonagenarian listeners are going to have to hit that FM button if they want endless election speculation until they get things fixed up. I do believe there have been some minor incidents as that very high tower, which is visible for miles in the northern areas, is located very close to Balloon Fiesta Park. KDSK is also near there (which puts out a very weak signal on 1240) but I think that most other AM towers have moved to the sites south of the city away form the balloons.

Here is another link as the story develops: https://www.krqe.com/news/albuquerque-metro/radio-tower-collapses-in-north-valley/
 
AbqAnonymous said:
It's a developing news story right now but 770 is off the air. Broadcasts on 96.3 are still going and the FM signal has also been their brand for almost five years so those nonagenarian listeners are going to have to hit that FM button if they want endless election speculation until they get things fixed up. I do believe there have been some minor incidents as that very high tower, which is visible for miles in the northern areas, is located very close to Balloon Fiesta Park. KDSK is also near there (which puts out a very weak signal on 1240) but I think that most other AM towers have moved to the sites south of the city away form the balloons.

Here is another link as the story develops: https://www.krqe.com/news/albuquerque-metro/radio-tower-collapses-in-north-valley/
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Was it the half wave (taller) tower that was hit?
 
AbqAnonymous said:
but I think that most other AM towers have moved to the sites south of the city away form the balloons.
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Unless the the FAA orders it, I seriously doubt any AM operator would volunteer to spend the money to move a tower. I am not sure of New Mexico laws but I bet the balloon owner's insurance will have to pay for the repair to the tower(s).

Just glad nobody is hurt.
 
TV channels 4, 7, & 13 have news links to the developing story. Didn't find anything on the KKOB website. Engineers are reportedly assessing the damage. Have to wonder if they will replace the tower. The 770 AM signal has been a heritage power house in the SW through the years, but is basically disregarded in station promos for 96.3 signal. I believe it's the taller tower that went down.
 
Cumulus might have "business interruption" insurance that will "replace" lost revenue too. I am sure someone will be figuring this out to the Cloud Company's advantage.
 
kevtronics said:
Off-topic, but does nobody know how to pull the video files directly off of a security camera system?
Click to expand...

Generally speaking, such systems record a specific window of time -- like 24 hours -- that is saved and can be accessed by the camera owner. The software for same usually allows for specific segments to be saved separately and downloaded.

The reason for news organizations getting more from viewers using hand-held devices (these days, much more likely to be their phone than a video camera) is that people like seeing "their" coverage on the local station, especially when they get attribution. With that willingness -- even eagerness -- to share with the media, why would anyone bother to ask the private concern to provide a clip from their camera?
 
I am trying to reach KRKE's owner (Don Davis) to find out the details of what KKOB is doing in the aftermath of this. Don is also a well-respected engineer in the market and Cumulus would likely have at least called him.
 
AbqAnonymous said:
It's a developing news story right now but 770 is off the air. Broadcasts on 96.3 are still going and the FM signal has also been their brand for almost five years so those nonagenarian listeners are going to have to hit that FM button if they want endless election speculation until they get things fixed up.
Click to expand...

Right now, I bet Cumulus is glad that KKOB-FM is a full-power station and not a translator, because the latter would have had to go silent with the AM off.

In fact, before Cumulus made the decision to simulcast on 96.3, they were using the same translator on 94.5 that Don and I had used for the original 80's format experiment in 2014-15. That began in September 2016 and continued until January 2020, when they moved the simulcast to 96.3 (flipping from their national "Nash" classic Country format).
 
K.M. Richards said:
Right now, I bet Cumulus is glad that KKOB-FM is a full-power station and not a translator, because the latter would have had to go silent with the AM off.

In fact, before Cumulus made the decision to simulcast on 96.3, they were using the same translator on 94.5 that Don and I had used for the original 80's format experiment in 2014-15. That began in September 2016 and continued until January 2020, when they moved the simulcast to 96.3 (flipping from their national "Nash" classic Country format).
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All one has to do is file an emergency STA with the FCC to run the translator"naked" if an act of God or bad piloting takes down your tower.
 
secondchoice said:
All one has to do is file an emergency STA with the FCC to run the translator"naked" if an act of God or bad piloting takes down your tower.
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As has been discussed in this thread, the FCC does not grant waivers of the translator rule for any reason, including STAs. The reason is that the translator is considered a secondary service and only exists as a retransmission medium.

However, this is an unnecessary side comment, as 96.3/KKOB-FM is a full-power FM, not a translator (as I said in the post you replied to, and even quoted my saying it!).
 
There is the nighttime synchronous booster in Santa Fe which obviously wouldn't be on if its parent station is off the air.

I wouldn't see much if any issue running daytime on the shorter tower and nighttime could be at 25%. If they do that the nighttime effect in some areas could be interesting. I'm not in Denver at the moment; not sure what effect there would be there but I guess we'll find out.
 
K.M. Richards said:
As has been discussed in this thread, the FCC does not grant waivers of the translator rule for any reason, including STAs. The reason is that the translator is considered a secondary service and only exists as a retransmission medium.

However, this is an unnecessary side comment, as 96.3/KKOB-FM is a full-power FM, not a translator (as I said in the post you replied to, and even quoted my saying it!).
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Maybe not naked but an accepted STA even with a very low power AM will let you run a translator.

WYYZ is running on a glorified "traffic info" system. Covering 5 (I am being generous) miles maybe, but their translator in Canton has filed that it is on air two days before the STA / CP expired. Must be something wrong with my radio I can pick up Praise 102.5 in Mapleton 30 miles south of Canton. I can't get the line of sight signal from the translator 15 miles away.

But I expect that from this operation, the previous owner went 4 plus years without the AM running. She was on 102.7 when licensed to 102.5. She claimed she had "verbal authorization" from the FCC because her engineer was moving to Australia. Someone who can lie like that with a straight face should be in politics.

Is this station an EAS "input" station?
 
K.M. Richards said:
As has been discussed in this thread, the FCC does not grant waivers of the translator rule for any reason, including STAs. The reason is that the translator is considered a secondary service and only exists as a retransmission medium.
Click to expand...
If I had an AM with a linked translator, I'd have a 50 watt backup AM transmitter and a long-wire antenna on the roof ready to go if the main AM failed so that I could keep the translator legally running.
 
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