GoldenShine9 1513 Posted August 27, 2020 Share Posted August 27, 2020 I believe all the Gray stations in Louisiana are covering KPLC (via WAFB) on a subchannel. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249582 Share on other sites More sharing options...
ref1997 59 Posted August 27, 2020 Share Posted August 27, 2020 Just switched to KPLC to check in and it seems they’re off air with a blue screen and a ticker. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249584 Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProButtonPusher 230 Posted August 27, 2020 Share Posted August 27, 2020 4 hours ago, ref1997 said: Just switched to KPLC to check in and it seems they’re off air with a blue screen and a ticker. I’m going to assume the ticker is frozen, as this is the STL tower right above their building. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249585 Share on other sites More sharing options...
tyrannical bastard 3951 Posted August 27, 2020 Share Posted August 27, 2020 I was watching the Lake Charles locals on YouTube TV (which is pretty much KPLC news being simulcast on KVHP) and they went blue about 12:30 am with the ticker still going. Both KVHP feeds of FOX and ABC had "technical difficulties" up. Switched over to SBTV and the KPLC feed from Baton Rouge was still going as of 1am. The shocker was that the Sagamore Hill owned CBS station with no local news department was on the air with a very primitive simulcast of a Facebook live feed switching between webpages of radar and DOT cams. Looks like they get weather forecasts from WLTZ in Columbus, GA. If their operations are not in Lake Charles, then they had an advantage when Lake Charles got hit. Kudos to them to making the effort while they were able to. All four stations were no longer available by 3am. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249586 Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottSchell 356 Posted August 27, 2020 Share Posted August 27, 2020 12 hours ago, J1975am said: The staff at KPLC in Lake Charles, LA had to evacuate the station due to the onset of Hurricane Laura. Some of their staff is now at KALB in Alexandria; others are at WAFB in Baton Rouge (all three are Gray-owned stations, of course). One of their meteorologists stated on-air that they were using a computer that was not theirs (he was at WAFB), so they must be using weather software different than what they have at KPLC..... I ask my fellow posters at TVNewsTalk to please keep the people of Lake Charles and Southwest Louisiana in your prayers for the next few days. This area is obviously not going to be the same after tonight..... And both KPLC and KSWL towers we're destroyed and KLCH radar has been destroyed. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249597 Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRob 937 Posted August 27, 2020 Share Posted August 27, 2020 I'm glad the people at KPLC abandoned ship and continued their work elsewhere. The radar stopped working while I was watching around midnight. This checks out. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249598 Share on other sites More sharing options...
tyrannical bastard 3951 Posted August 27, 2020 Share Posted August 27, 2020 Any word on KVHP's tower? If it's still standing it could be a means of getting KPLC back on the air as a subchannel for the time being. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249603 Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProButtonPusher 230 Posted August 27, 2020 Share Posted August 27, 2020 For the record, the tower we see twisted and downed is not their main transmitter tower, it’s the tower that sends the signal up to it, north east of Lake Charles. It may not be in any better shape, but I haven’t seen any reports on that. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249605 Share on other sites More sharing options...
caliwxdude 254 Posted August 27, 2020 Share Posted August 27, 2020 23 minutes ago, ProButtonPusher said: For the record, the tower we see twisted and downed is not their main transmitter tower, it’s the tower that sends the signal up to it, north east of Lake Charles. It may not be in any better shape, but I haven’t seen any reports on that. It does seem like the STL tower at the studio collapsed right where at least one of the STL dishes is located, so... things might not be so bad, provided the transmitter mast is still intact? Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249606 Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProButtonPusher 230 Posted August 27, 2020 Share Posted August 27, 2020 8 minutes ago, caliwxdude said: It does seem like the STL tower at the studio collapsed right where at least one of the STL dishes is located, so... things might not be so bad, provided the transmitter mast is still intact? If the line up to that microwave dish wasn’t cut, then the link would probably still work. It looked like it was still aimed in the right direction. I did see another angle, however, that showed the top of the tower poking through the roof of the building, which means rain has gotten in. Hopefully not too much equipment was in the area. A temporary STL using a satellite uplink would definitely be easy to pull off, and perhaps necessary if they’re out of the building for a while. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249607 Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRob 937 Posted August 27, 2020 Share Posted August 27, 2020 Even if it is not the main transmitter, you still have a risk of falling and flying debris in a major hurricane situation. As mentioned, some of the falling metal pierced the building. I am not aware of any problems with KVHP. Given its tower site, it probably didn't have near the kind of wind Lake Charles experienced. Likewise I didn't hear of any problems with radio stations that didn't take themselves off the air intentionally. Many of the radio towers appear to be in Sulphur or west of there. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249608 Share on other sites More sharing options...
MidwestTV 1232 Posted August 27, 2020 Share Posted August 27, 2020 7 hours ago, TheRob said: I'm glad the people at KPLC abandoned ship and continued their work elsewhere. What's equally bizarre is KPLC lost two transmitting towers at once last year: an old one set for decommission and the one being built to replace it. https://www.kplctv.com/story/2170789/kplcs-new-transmitting-tower-operational/ Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249615 Share on other sites More sharing options...
ProButtonPusher 230 Posted August 27, 2020 Share Posted August 27, 2020 The hole is literally in the roof of the news studio itself. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249619 Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoldenShine9 1513 Posted August 27, 2020 Share Posted August 27, 2020 I'd suspect that KPLC will stay at WAFB until conditions in Lake Charles are somewhat habitable, then the conference room or something would be the makeshift newsroom until repairs are done. The rest of the building looks okay. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249620 Share on other sites More sharing options...
tyrannical bastard 3951 Posted August 28, 2020 Share Posted August 28, 2020 Does KPLC (and other Gray stations in Louisiana and elsewhere) hub their master control? If they can get the transmitter(s) up and running, and feed a source to them, then they could return to the airwaves in some form. Since it appears to be the studio that was affected, that could put them out of commission for a while, unless the station is able to resume a form of normal operation in their facility. It could almost be like when WTVD in Durham had a studio fire in 1979 in their nearly-new facility, and had to cobble together the news staff throughout the building, including using a conference room as their news "studio". In the case of Hurricane Michael and WMBB, while their news studio and master control were unaffected, the rest of the building was, and had to be literally stripped down to the studs and rebuilt from the inside out. Affected staff was moved into temporary trailers for up to a year while renovations were made. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249628 Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoldenShine9 1513 Posted August 28, 2020 Share Posted August 28, 2020 34 minutes ago, tyrannical bastard said: Does KPLC (and other Gray stations in Louisiana and elsewhere) hub their master control? If they can get the transmitter(s) up and running, and feed a source to them, then they could return to the airwaves in some form. Since it appears to be the studio that was affected, that could put them out of commission for a while, unless the station is able to resume a form of normal operation in their facility. It could almost be like when WTVD in Durham had a studio fire in 1979 in their nearly-new facility, and had to cobble together the news staff throughout the building, including using a conference room as their news "studio". In the case of Hurricane Michael and WMBB, while their news studio and master control were unaffected, the rest of the building was, and had to be literally stripped down to the studs and rebuilt from the inside out. Affected staff was moved into temporary trailers for up to a year while renovations were made. I don't know how Gray deals with master control. However, the building - apart from the newsroom - looks to be in decent shape and the building is probably not a total loss (but the equipment may be), so they could probably get temporary equipment (if Gray recently replaced equipment from another station, they could send it to Lake Charles) and make a makeshift newsroom in the conference room or somewhere else in the building. I do think their best hope in the short term is to use a subchannel of KVHP, either by dumping their DT3 (Circle) or DT4 (Ion) or adding a DT5. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249630 Share on other sites More sharing options...
who?cares 254 Posted August 28, 2020 Share Posted August 28, 2020 51 minutes ago, GoldenShine9 said: I don't know how Gray deals with master control. However, the building - apart from the newsroom - looks to be in decent shape and the building is probably not a total loss (but the equipment may be), so they could probably get temporary equipment (if Gray recently replaced equipment from another station, they could send it to Lake Charles) and make a makeshift newsroom in the conference room or somewhere else in the building. I do think their best hope in the short term is to use a subchannel of KVHP, either by dumping their DT3 (Circle) or DT4 (Ion) or adding a DT5. Well, WBRC is currently being upgraded to automation. Their old equipment could work. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249632 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Morphtato 43 Posted August 28, 2020 Share Posted August 28, 2020 Some damage photos from inside the KPLC studio. Definitely glad they evacuated when they did. Source: https://www.kplctv.com/2020/08/27/lake-charles-tv-station-tower-toppled-laura/ Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249636 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yankees4life 559 Posted August 28, 2020 Share Posted August 28, 2020 1 hour ago, Morphtato said: Some damage photos from inside the KPLC studio. Definitely glad they evacuated when they did. Source: https://www.kplctv.com/2020/08/27/lake-charles-tv-station-tower-toppled-laura/ The Spirit of Lousiana will live on!! Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249637 Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoldenShine9 1513 Posted August 28, 2020 Share Posted August 28, 2020 From the sounds of things, some staff also moved to KALB in Alexandria. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249657 Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRob 937 Posted August 28, 2020 Share Posted August 28, 2020 I take it back about the radio stations. Cumulus' building in Lake Charles suffered damage. But the radio stations can operate from alternate locations more easily. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249659 Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScottSchell 356 Posted August 29, 2020 Share Posted August 29, 2020 On 8/28/2020 at 1:11 PM, GoldenShine9 said: From the sounds of things, some staff also moved to KALB in Alexandria. Some are in Alexandria and some are in Baton Rouge. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249702 Share on other sites More sharing options...
tyrannical bastard 3951 Posted August 31, 2020 Share Posted August 31, 2020 At least for YoutubeTV, all of the local affiliates are not available, (and more than likely, not broadcasting due to the damages they sustained) FOXNET is feeding on KVHP's slot.....I didn't know they still existed, since they were shut down after WABG added them as a subchannel in 2006. There are still a couple tiny markets that lack FOX though. For the services that are still available, I would imagine they would be able to import adjacent (or co-owned) affiliates until the local stations can operate. But as in any major storm, it's gravity has crippled any ability to communicate, yet alone function, so restoring functionality could take a very long time. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249772 Share on other sites More sharing options...
CircleSeven 1955 Posted September 1, 2020 Share Posted September 1, 2020 KPLC is in the process of removing the crumpled tower from on top of the building. I think they're bringing three cranes to do the job. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249891 Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoldenShine9 1513 Posted September 1, 2020 Share Posted September 1, 2020 10 minutes ago, CircleSeven said: KPLC is in the process of removing the crumpled tower from on top of the building. I think they're bringing three cranes to do the job. I suspect once power is largely restored to Lake Charles, they should be back in that building, although they would need a temporary set with all new equipment in the conference room or somewhere else on the property (does Gray have a mobile newsroom that they can bring to Lake Charles?). I would suspect everything inside the newsroom is a total loss and that would need to be gutted and rebuilt. Another challenge is housing for those who may have had homes destroyed or severely damaged. Even once they return, I suspect some staff will continue to work out of WAFB or KALB. Link to comment https://localnewstalk.net/topic/17939-2-tropical-systems-in-the-gulf/page/2/#findComment-249892 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.