A wildfire has destroyed a longtime Scottsbluff-area transmitter site, taking one FM signal off the air and forcing several others to move to new temporary locations.
The 170-acre wildfire that began late on Thursday, Aug. 4, destroyed one home and damaged nearly a dozen outbuildings, according to the Scottsbluff Star-Herald, which reported Monday that the State Fire Marshal has determined that the fire originated in a home fire pit.
The Nebraska Rural Radio Association’s KNEB reported that one of the destroyed structures was the transmitter building at the former KOLT/1320 studio on Kolt Lane. It was the licensed site for KHYY/106.9 (Minatare-Scottsbluff) and was also serving as the temporary site for three other FM stations during a construction project at their licensed tower site six miles away. The station reported that the transmitter building and all equipment was lost.
The NRRA’s KMOR/93.3 (Gering-Scottsbluff), KOZY-FM/101.3 (Bridgeport-Scottsbluff), and KHYY resumed broadcasting from different temporary sites, the station reported. Details of the temporary facilities are not immediately available.
Meanwhile, Spirit Catholic Radio’s KETT/99.3 (Mitchell-Scottsbluff) filed a notification of suspension of operations with the FCC on Monday.
As reported here previously, work underway at the licensed KMOR/KOZY-FM/KETT site west of Scottsbluff will add several more stations to the tower. KETT will move to 99.5 and KHYY will move to 107.3, with both getting large upgrades.
A post on Spirit’s website indicates that KETT may be able to begin broadcasting from the new facility by mid-August.
Meanwhile, KOLT/690 (Terrytown-Scottsbluff), which assumed the KOLT callsign when 1320 went silent, has a construction permit to move its transmitter to the Kolt Lane site. FCC records indicate the site has been used for broadcasting since 1938.
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