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WAMW (AM) and WAMW-FM/Washington off air

PTBoardOp94

PTBoardOp94

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Local radio station WAMW suffered more than $20,000 in damage when its transmitter was damaged in the wind around 7:40 p.m., causing both AM and FM stations to go off air.

“The transmitter was like a pretzel,” said owner and State Rep. Dave Crooks, D-Washington. “The sign was gone. We found the big sign 150 yards away in a ditch. The trailer by Peddles was completely disintegrated. It was a major hit for us.”
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- Washington Times-Herald

I'm not in the area, but "like a pretzel" doesn't sound like any TX I've ever seen...but $20,000 is way low for a tower. Also, the tower site near Bicknell has two towers and two transmitter shacks. Basically, the article is confusing to me.

Anyone got any info on it? And are they back on the air? The article said they would plan to be back today (Monday).
 
> “The transmitter was like a pretzel,” said owner and State
> Rep. Dave Crooks, D-Washington.
> I'm not in the area, but "like a pretzel" doesn't sound like
> any TX I've ever seen...but $20,000 is way low for a tower.
> Also, the tower site near Bicknell has two towers and two
> transmitter shacks. Basically, the article is confusing to
> me.
>
> Anyone got any info on it? And are they back on the air?
> The article said they would plan to be back today (Monday).
>

The transmitter was some older model Gates and the phaser was a homemade rig by the owner. The owner, according to the FCC, is William Greene Electronics, not Rep. Crooks.

I was given a tour by the owner many years ago and the phaser was housed in a cabinet constructed of sheet metal. The kind you would get at a farm equipment store. (Hardly FCC specs.)

The AM is directional, thus the two (very short) towers. The AM is up at 1560 or so. I know the FM is a short spaced Class A, but I don't recall the frequency.

$20,000 might be a reasonable figure for the equipment. I remember thinking it was quite the shoestring operation and one that an FCC field inspector would see and would surely think he had died and gone to forfeiture heaven.
 
> The transmitter was some older model Gates and the phaser
> was a homemade rig by the owner. The owner, according to
> the FCC, is William Greene Electronics, not Rep. Crooks.
>
> I was given a tour by the owner many years ago and the
> phaser was housed in a cabinet constructed of sheet metal.
> The kind you would get at a farm equipment store. (Hardly
> FCC specs.)
>
> The AM is directional, thus the two (very short) towers.
> The AM is up at 1560 or so. I know the FM is a short spaced
> Class A, but I don't recall the frequency.
>
> $20,000 might be a reasonable figure for the equipment. I
> remember thinking it was quite the shoestring operation and
> one that an FCC field inspector would see and would surely
> think he had died and gone to forfeiture heaven.
>
Bill Greene is a man I see every once in a while when I'm in Washington, and I know that he sold to Dave Crooks. Bill is in poor health, and felt it would be better to sell the stations out than to have them go into the estate...I'm not even sure if he has children.

WAMW-FM is 107.9.
 
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