Two TV stations say their transmitters are threatened by Station fire
August 30, 2009 | 7:29 pm
Two TV stations said tonight that their transmitters are threatened by the Station fire, which is burning near the communications center atop Mt. Wilson.
KCBS-TV Channel 2 and KABC-TV Channel 7 said that viewers with cable and satellite TV will still be able get the signal if the transmitters are damaged. Those without cable or satellite might lose their signal.
"If you receive ABC7 by off-air antenna, you could lose our ABC7 signal," KABC said in a e-mail bulletin.
Most TV stations and many radio stations have transmitters on Mt. Wilson, as do some cellphone carriers
Station fire likely to hit historic Mt. Wilson observatory, fire officials say
August 30, 2009 | 5:42 pm
The fire burning in Angeles National Forest is approaching the historic solar observatory and television transmission towers atop Mt. Wilson, according to Los Angeles County fire officials.
The communications towers house transmitters for every major television station in Los Angeles.
“We expect it to get there in the next two to four hours,” said county fire Capt. Mark Savage.
Crews were clearing brush around the structures, but fire officials were not sure if they could leave personnel on the mountain to fight the flames because of the danger and limited escape routes. The fire is less than two miles away.
“It’s a serious situation,” said Bob Shindelar, operations branch director of California Incident Management Team 5. “Is the observatory going to make it? We’re doing everything in our power. But I wouldn’t be surprised if it is impacted by fire today or tomorrow.”
-- Joe Mozingo
L.A. OTA Television in danger of going off air
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