Post by David on Jun 5, 2004 11:33:53 GMT -5
From www.radioworld.com....
"Dude, What Was That Noise?": Indiana Tower Knocked Down by Vandals
===================================================================
Oh, the lengths to which some people will go for air conditioning.
Two young men are charged in a break-in at the WBOW(AM) transmitter
building on U.S. Route 40 in Terre Haute, Ind., late last month. They
reportedly broke through two steel doors and knocked loose a small
window air conditioner, small radio, box fan and extension ladder; but
the station transmitting equipment was left alone - until the vandals
attempted to flee the scene.
According to the station's newsletter, the two accidentally ran their
Dodge pickup into a set of guy wires. Instead of stopping, backing up
and going underneath the wires, they proceeded with the wires broken
loose and wrapped around the front end of the truck, pulling the
130-foot tower to the ground.
It had been standing since 1959.
General Manager Mike Petersen confirmed the report. He said he was
notified that the Crossroads Communications station was off the air at
9:30 that evening due to a guy wire that had fallen over the power
line, thus opening the fuse on the transformer outside the building.
The damage was discovered the next morning. The truck was found stuck
in the mud behind the transmitter, with the air conditioner and fan in
the back.
Vigo County Sheriff's deputies traced the owner of the truck, and two
arrests have since been made, sending one of the culprits to the
county jail, Petersen said.
Station Engineer Tom Mulvhill attached a 180-foot makeshift long-wire
antenna to two large fence posts to get WBOW back on the air, with
reduced power of 100 watts. Petersen said a new tower should be up
within two weeks, but the timeframe could be delayed if the Wabash
River floods, as has been forecast.
"Dude, What Was That Noise?": Indiana Tower Knocked Down by Vandals
===================================================================
Oh, the lengths to which some people will go for air conditioning.
Two young men are charged in a break-in at the WBOW(AM) transmitter
building on U.S. Route 40 in Terre Haute, Ind., late last month. They
reportedly broke through two steel doors and knocked loose a small
window air conditioner, small radio, box fan and extension ladder; but
the station transmitting equipment was left alone - until the vandals
attempted to flee the scene.
According to the station's newsletter, the two accidentally ran their
Dodge pickup into a set of guy wires. Instead of stopping, backing up
and going underneath the wires, they proceeded with the wires broken
loose and wrapped around the front end of the truck, pulling the
130-foot tower to the ground.
It had been standing since 1959.
General Manager Mike Petersen confirmed the report. He said he was
notified that the Crossroads Communications station was off the air at
9:30 that evening due to a guy wire that had fallen over the power
line, thus opening the fuse on the transformer outside the building.
The damage was discovered the next morning. The truck was found stuck
in the mud behind the transmitter, with the air conditioner and fan in
the back.
Vigo County Sheriff's deputies traced the owner of the truck, and two
arrests have since been made, sending one of the culprits to the
county jail, Petersen said.
Station Engineer Tom Mulvhill attached a 180-foot makeshift long-wire
antenna to two large fence posts to get WBOW back on the air, with
reduced power of 100 watts. Petersen said a new tower should be up
within two weeks, but the timeframe could be delayed if the Wabash
River floods, as has been forecast.
