Creek Fire threatens to knock Fresno-area TV, radio stations off the air
The Creek Fire raced through hundreds of acres of forest Monday and was bearing down on Fresno’s largest television and radio transmitters.
“The area was evacuated and the reason is because the threat is imminent,” said Alex Olow, a spokesman with the U.S. Force Service. Olow was unable to give a more specific location of the fire path.
The television stations under threat include ABC 30, Univision 21, NBC 24, CBS 47, and Telemundo 51. The radio stations include KVPR, KMJ, KFCF, La Buena 105.1, KSKS, and KFMO 90.1, according to Gary Cocola, the owner of Cocola Broadcasting Companies, which owns independent over-the-air television stations in the Fresno-Visalia-Merced TV market and a building and transmitters in Meadow Lakes area that’s threatened by the fire.
In a column, Valley Public Radio General Manager Joe Moore wrote that while local broadcasters had taken precautions, “the risk that the fire could interrupt our broadcasts on FM 89.3 is real.”
Some stations have already been affected. Rych Withers, general manager of KFCF, said KMJ-FM and KFCF lost power at 4:15 p.m., and the generator did not start.
Using the Cal Fire online map, Cocola estimated the fire was about 10 miles away from the transmitters on Monday afternoon.
Several scenarios worry local station owners. The fire might damage the buildings, collapse the antenna and the tower, or burn the coax, the 1,000-watt cable that runs 200 feet high to the antenna, Cocola said. He said the power could also go out, and fires could damage the back-up generators.
“Right now, we’re in a wait and see mode,” he said.
Olow said that if the fire reaches the transmitters, a Cal Fire crew would most likely intervene, using something akin to aluminum foil to shield the buildings and their most vulnerable structures.
“We hope that doesn’t happen,” he added.
Will I still be able to watch Fresno-area TV?
If the fire damages the transmitters radio stations would be off the air, according to Moore from Valley Public Radio. TV stations would also be unavailable over the air, Cocola said.
People with cable may be less affected, he explained, depending on how the stations transmit their channels. If they use a fiber connection, programming may still be available, but stations that rely on satellite carriers picking up the air signal would be unable to transmit their showing.
ABC 30 reported the fire could interrupt its broadcast signal, but programming will continue to be accessible online and on connected TV apps Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV and Android TV.
“People will find a way to get the information, as long as they have access to the internet,” Cocola said.
This story was originally published September 7, 2020 at 8:07 PM with the headline "Creek Fire threatens to knock Fresno-area TV, radio stations off the air."