The winter storm that moved through much of the country this week knocked down two TV towers in South Dakota on Wednesday. The larger, 1,700-foot TV tower is owned by Nexstar KDLO-TV. An adjacent 800-foot tower also fell that day, according to NorthPine. The Inside Towers database indicates the tower was built in 1978.
Antennas for Alpha Media’s KDLO-FM were also on the larger tower under a lease agreement. KDLO is back on-air, broadcasting from a backup facility, notes Inside Radio. The station says it’s broadcasting with reduced signal strength and coverage, but listeners can also tune in online at: www.gowatertown.net.
Watertown Radio Engineer Bruce Erlandson told KDLO-FM a salvage company will need to come and remove “all the mangled steel. It’s just a mangled mess up there.” He estimates it could take a year to rebuild and the costs will run into the “hundreds of thousands” of dollars.
KDLO reported when the towers collapsed, two buildings underneath them were hit by falling metal. No injuries were reported.
By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief
