A radio station owner in Jasper, Alabama, was surprised to learn that his entire radio tower and transmitter were stolen. As CNN reported:
“A small-town radio station manager had a big surprise when he learned the station’s 200-foot radio tower and transmitter in Jasper, Alabama, was missing. Brett Elmore, the general manager of WJLX, said his landscaper had been doing a cleanup of the property Friday when the crew discovered the tower was gone. Every piece of equipment had also been stolen and the wires to the tower had been cut at the site, Elmore said in a Facebook post.”
To make matters worse, CNN reported that the FCC refused the station’s request to broadcast the “stolen” station’s content from a translator. The FCC apparently noted that a translator cannot broadcast original content and can only retransmit the content from a primary station. This is an absurd result since the primary station is off the air because all of its transmitting equipment was stolen.
While this is truly a unique situation, it is worth reminding stations that stealing copper and other valuable metals from stations has become an issue. It may be worth looking at some form of security, such as remote cameras, for your facilities.
You can see the story as reported by CNN here.