OKLAHOMA BROADCASTING NEWS III
June 21, 1999: RDS TO THE RESCUE
As soon as I noticed a sporadic-E opening tearing up OKC 4 and 5, and
on up to ch 6, I turned the ATS-909 on FM and started tuning up with
the whip antenna only. There was a skip signal on 89.3 with classical
music, and before I had a chance to think about what it might be,
up popped the ID on the RDS window : "WSCI" which is Charleston SC.
Thank you, very much. Turned out to be carrying NPR syndicated
classical //KOSU-91.7 but a satellite delay or two behind KOSU, until
KOSU split at 1714 UT June 21 for local PSAs.
Kept tuning and came upon some new OK RDS'ers -- 94.7 first displayed
from memory WSCI, then switched to the correct "KQSR". And local KOFM
103.1 Enid even has it now with "KOFM" ID. I put these in quotes since
a station can put anything they want on the RDS, not necessarily the
legal ID, e.g. OKC 101.9's "TWISTER" (gh)
Daytime bandscans June 20 and 21 show KOKC-1490 Guthrie missing again;
when on, it has been relaying KNOR-1400 Norman (gh)
June 21: NEW SEVERE WEATHER CHANNEL
Steve Miller, KC5TRR of Stillwater, Oklahoma, reports that storm
spotters and chasers from around the country who use ham radio for
communications have voted in favor of using 146.55 MHz. This, as a
universal nationwide simplex frequency during severe weather events.
Miller tells Newsline that the decision to adopt 146.55 MHz came
following two months of work and two lengthy forums to discuss the
issue. For more information, Steve says to visit
http://www.hamsnet.net/kc5trr. (KC5TRR) (Newsline June 18, 1999,
via John Norfolk, "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?", REVIEW OF
INTERNATIONAL BROADCASTING)
June 19:
KJON, 850, Anadarko, finally seems to be clear of a nasty modulation-
peak spur from KBYE, 890, OKC, which has been plaguing it for YEARS.
Several random checks in June no longer find the problem. We had
complained informally about this a few months ago to FCC's Riley
Hollingsworth, known for his efforts in cleaning up the ham bands.
He replied that he'd pass it on to his counterpart in the appropriate
FCC office. The only distinctive show on KJON we know of, Indians for
Indians, is still on the air Saturdays at 11 am - noon CT, as
reconfirmed June 19. Now all we have to fight are T-storm crashes and
KOA's residual groundwave co-channel. When we phoned the manager of
then KRPT in Anadarko a few years ago, she would not grasp the
importance of this problem cutting into KRPT's coverage, especially
between Anadarko and OKC (gh, Enid)
June 15:
OKC's NBC affiliate, owned, believe it or not by The New York Times,
is reaping a bonanza of worldwide publicity -- and its competitors
have no choice but to join in -- by the sheer coincidence that the
allied forces in Kosova are known as "KFOR". Station, originally
WKY-TV, and interimly KTVY, recently celebrated 50th anniversary (gh)
June 2: HAMS WRAP UP OKLAHOMA TORNADO DUTY
Hams in Oklahoma stood down at mid-month following several days of
volunteering to provide emergency communication after severe
tornadoes devastated entire communities May 3. The Oklahoma storms
left dozens dead, hundreds injured, and thousands homeless.
Meteorologists now say the worst tornadoes were F5 storms packing
record-breaking winds of 318 mph!
"It's like a nuclear bomb went off," said ARRL Public Information
Coordinator Tom Webb, WA9AFM. Webb was among the hams assisting Red
Cross teams with damage assessment following the storm.
Hams got initial word of the tornadoes to the National Weather
Service. "The first reports of tornado development came to our
forecast office through ham radio," said Dennis McCarthy, KC5EVH, the
meteorologist in charge of the NWS Forecast Office in Norman,
Oklahoma.
The Salvation Army's Frank McCollum, N5FM, coordinated Amateur Radio
activities on behalf of his organization. McCollum, who also
organized the Salvation Army's Amateur Radio efforts in the wake of
the Oklahoma City federal building bombing, said that ham radio
remained "critical" until cellular telephone service was restored.
Ham volunteers subsequently were assigned to handle transport for
meals. Some even volunteered to load and unload trucks and delivery
vehicles. "We did good!" McCollum exulted.
Jim Volner, WA1VIB, reports that hams aided volunteers using heavy
equipment to remove storm debris in the heavily-damaged village of
Bridge Creek, 20 miles south of Oklahoma City. "I was very proud to
be part of the situation where ham radio operators and the community
all came together to provide a vital service," said Volner, a New
Hampshire State Police retiree.
By mid-May, Oklahoma Section Manager Charlie Calhoun, K5TTT, reported
that Amateur Radio efforts were officially wrapped up. "Many times we
think of those who helped after the incident, but I would also like
to thank the weather spotters who helped warn on this storm" Calhoun
said, "If it were not for them, we could have lost many more lives."
For more Oklahoma tornado information and photos, visit
http://www.hamsnet.net/kc5trr/oklahoma_disaster.htm
(John Norfolk, "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?", R.I.B.)
May 13:
KOCO-TV has, more often than not, been running at least a sesquiminute
late past 10:35 pm, joining Nightline in progress. This cannot be an
accident -- and the runover time is commercials following the local
news. Perhaps making up for all the revenue lost during tornado
coverage -- but most unprofessional. They would no doubt maintain
there was just too much news to squeeze into only 35 minutes... (gh)
May 11:
OKLAHOMA, KANSAS TORNADOES: HAM RADIO IS THERE--BEFORE, DURING, AND
AFTER
Hams in Oklahoma and Kansas were ready and waiting in the hours
before severe tornadoes devastated entire communities south of
Oklahoma City and in the Wichita, Kansas, area. The storm system
developed in southwestern Oklahoma and moved to the northeast,
spawning numerous tornadoes. The storms have left at least 46 people
dead, hundreds injured, and thousands homeless.
Peter Laws, N5UWY, at the National Severe Storms Lab in Norman,
Oklahoma, reports that the National Weather Service office there was
in contact--mostly via 2 meters--with various weather-spotting nets
to the south and west of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area.
"SKYWARN is a regular, everyday occurrence here, and hams are a vital
part of the warning process," Laws said.
The storms wiped out thousands of houses. Meteorologists said the
worst tornadoes appeared to be F5 storms packing winds of 260 mph.
Oklahoma Public Information Coordinator Thomas Webb, WA9AFM, reports
he's monitored health-and-welfare traffic on both 2 meters and 75
meters coordinating Salvation Army canteen support. "Based on the
excellent warning, most of the victims appear to have left the
disaster area prior to the strike and were in contact with friends or
family or were in shelters with adequate communications," he said.
Oklahoma Section Emergency Coordinator Bennett Basore, W5ZTN, has
been running emergency nets and radio amateurs have been handling
"tons of health and welfare traffic."
The Salvation Army Team Emergency Radio Network (SATERN) has
established an Amateur Radio link with Oklahoma City. SATERN is
accepting requests via the Internet for information about the health
and welfare of loved ones in the Oklahoma City area. Visit
http://www.angelfire.com/il/satern411/emailfrm.html for more
information. (A "Family Finder" site also is being operated by
Unibuilt Technology at http://www.unibuilt.com/okcsupport/ )
On May 6, both the Salvation Army and the American Red Cross put out
calls for additional Amateur Radio assistance. Oklahoma Section
Manager Charlie Calhoun, K5TTT, reports the Salvation Army requested
additional amateur operators starting May 7 and probably for the rest
of the week. "They need hams to act as shadows and transport units in
addition to manning the canteens," he said.
No vehicles were being allowed in the field, and officials were
shuttling hams in and out. Calhoun said it appeared that Amateur
Radio communication would be required at least through May 8. Hams
from the Tulsa area were planning to head for the Oklahoma City area
to assist. The Red Cross has requested at least 50 hams to begin
damage assessment May 7.
Amateurs in the affected communities used operating VHF and UHF
repeaters plus HF to coordinate health-and-welfare traffic inquiries,
mobile canteens, shelters, and other emergency response activities.
At Calhoun's request, the FCC on May 4 declared a communications
emergency in the Oklahoma area. The FCC declared 3900 kHz and 7285
kHz (plus or minus 3 kHz) off limits until 5 PM Central Time on May
7. [One of the mentally challenged bozos on the
rec.radio.amateur.misc newsgroup, "Oris," unaware that 3900 is the
regular Oklahoma emergency frequency, wrote that the FCC probably
chose 3900 to run Rich "Porkbutt" Whiten, WB2OTK, off his favorite
frequency of 3901. Meanwhile, in an earlier posting, Whiten himself
claimed that K4OKA was jamming the emergency net on 3900. "The Moron
is running double sideband on 3894.5, his signal is up as far as
3903...Wonder where Riley is now."--jn]
Jim Leist, KB5W, who chairs the Central Area Staff of the National
Traffic System, said the storms hit telephone services hard, and
officials were asking that cellular telephone usage be restricted to
emergency services personnel. "Amateur radio resources in the area
are heavily involved with support to those agencies," Leist said.
"On-site support is the first priority for hams in the affected
areas."
Leist said the only real backlog was in the area of health-and-
welfare requests coming from outside. He said it's likely that
health-and-welfare traffic will remain backed up for several days,
due to a lack of outlets to handle the messages on the receiving end.
"Anyone accepting H&W messages should inform the senders of this
unavoidable delay and the reasons for it," he said.
For more Oklahoma tornado information and photos, visit
http://www.hamsnet.net/kc5trr/oklahoma_disaster.htm
In the Wichita, Kansas, area, ARES District 5 EC Bob Harder, W0BH,
reports his ARES group was called up by the Red Cross shortly after
the storm. "ARES members and other area hams worked all night and all
next day providing communication for the Red Cross headquarters and
later between three shelters set up in the south Wichita area," he
said. Harder cited Red Cross Coordinator, John Sullivan, KG0MZ, and
Assistant Red Cross Coordinator, Greg Mitchell, N0WHC, for helping to
make operations run smoothly.
The Salvation Army has established a shelter in an elementary school
in the Wichita area, and four mobile canteens are serving food and
beverages for residents and emergency workers.
Kansas Section Manager Orlan Cook, W0OYH, in Shawnee, reported that
Kansas nets were operating on their normal schedules. (ARRL Letter,
May 7, 1999, American Radio Relay League)
F-5 TORNADO HITS OKC - OTHERS HIT KANSAS
When daybreak came to Oklahoma and Kansas on Tuesday May 4th, rescue
crews were still picking their way past snapped-off trees and smashed
cars. This, in a search for more victims of powerful tornadoes that
killed at least forty-five people on Monday May 3rd.
The biggest of the storms -- an F-5 category tornado cut a half-mile
wide path of destruction in an area near Oklahoma City. Power lines
were toppled, debris flew and sirens blared as the twister moved from
Chickasha to Oklahoma City's heavily populated suburbs some 50 miles
to the northeast. Television reports from the area showed hundreds of
destroyed homes and vehicles. Police and emergency workers, aided by
ham radio operators had spent the night combing through the debris in
the overnight darkness, knowing that a severe weather watch was still
in effect.
According to news reports, President Clinton has declared 11 counties
in Oklahoma disaster areas. Meanwhile, the frequencies of 7.285 and
3.900 MHz have been declared as off limits to all but Tornado related
ham radio emergency communications until at least Friday May 7th.
Hams not directly involved in the storm relief effort are requested
to keep at least three kilohertz away. Even after May 7th be sure to
check to see if these frequencies are clear of emergency
communications before making a call. (Newsline, W0QA - Off-Air Audio
by RAIN) (Newsline, May 7, 1999) (via "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?")
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 30 ARLB030
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT May 6, 1999
To all radio amateurs
SB QST ARL ARLB030
ARLB030 Operators still needed in Oklahoma tornado recovery
The Salvation Army and the American Red Cross have put out calls for
additional Amateur Radio assistance in the wake of Monday's
devastating tornadoes in Oklahoma. Oklahoma Section Emergency
Coordinator Bennett Basore, W5ZTN, has been running emergency nets
and radio amateurs have been handling ''tons of health and welfare
traffic.''
Oklahoma Section Manager Charlie Calhoun, K5TTT, reports the
Salvation Army has requested amateur operators starting May 7 and
probably for the rest of the week. ''They need hams to act as
shadows and transport units in addition to manning the canteens,''
Calhoun said. ''They are expecting to send out 40 canteens into the
field tomorrow.''
Calhoun said much of the activity is going through the Edmond,
Oklahoma, 147.135 MHz repeater, which can be difficult to access
with hand-held transceivers. He said mobile transceivers and
external antennas and power sources would be a better choice.
He said volunteers should plan to stay at least four hours in the
field. No vehicles are allowed in the field, and officials are
shuttling hams in and out. Calhoun said it appeared that Amateur
Radio communication would be required at least through Saturday.
Volunteers should check in with the net control on the 147.135
repeater upon arriving in Oklahoma City.
Hams from the Tulsa area are planning to leave today for the
Oklahoma City area to assist.
Ken Runyon, KC5PNO, reports that The Red Cross is requesting at
least 50 amateur operators to be available all day Friday, May 7, to
begin damage assessment. ''Hams will start working with damage
assessment teams at 7:30 AM and will be moving from home to home
through the disaster area,'' he said. Operators will need good
footwear, a two-meter radio, and batteries to last at least 10
hours. Volunteers should contact the Red Cross, 405 232-7121.
OK Public Information Coordinator Thomas Webb, WA9AFM, reports he's
monitored health-and-welfare traffic on both 2 meters and 75 meters
coordinating Salvation Army canteen support.
''Based on the excellent warning, most of the victims appear to have
left the disaster area prior to the strike and were in contact with
friends or family or were in shelters with adequate
communications,'' he said.
For more tornado information and photos, visit
http://www.hamsnet.net/kc5trr/oklahomadisaster.htm
[sic---it's http://www.hamsnet.net/kc5trr/oklahoma_disaster.htm]
(via John Norfolk, OKCOK)
May 7:
Glenn: I tuned to the 8:30 PM CDT news last night and heard about the
tornadoes in the OKC area. KOMA 1520 was already fading in with
simulcast of an OKC TV station. The signal got stronger and stronger
until about 9:40 P.M. CDT when it abruptly faded out. I guess they
either went to their directional pattern very late or they lost all
power at the transmitter. At 11:45 I tuned around around and found WSB
with a CNN simulcast. They started talking about all of these tornadoes
in and around the Enid area. So I'm very glad that you and the WOR
Headquarters are O.K. How did Enid come out???????? P.S.I can't believe
that 930 AM was all sports last night. 73s, (Artie Bigley, Louisville,
KY May 4)
George Thurman was also asking me about OK clear channel AM stations.
OK got the short end of the stick as far as CC's -- the only two are
KOMA-1520 OKC and KVOO 1170 Tulsa. Both have nulls toward the east at
night, but are widely heard westward. KOMA is oldies, KVOO country,
neither normally bothering much with news, tho KVOO is better than
KOMA. The only stations with a significant news format in the state
are KTOK 1000 OKC but low powered, doesn't get out at night; and KRMG
740 Tulsa; tho 50 kW day with a directional signal that reaches into
the TX and OK panhandles, gets lost at night with a different pattern
and lower power. The transmitter sites of both KOMA-1520 and KTOK-1000
are in Moore or the southern part of OKC not too far (but evidently far
enough) from the path of destruction.
Enid had some tornados [I think spelling this with an E makes the word
too "cute" and an English affectation] spotted in the area later in
the evening around 10:30-11:30; sirens went off and we were all advised
to take cover. One was supposedly heading straight across central Enid
from the only mall at the SW corner - but if so, it never touched down.
From the storm cellar we didn't hear any high winds at all, and there
weren't even any tree limbs broken as has frequently happened before
from straight winds (gh)
Subject: [AmFmTvDx] OKC tornados
All is well here on the west side of Oklahoma City after Monday
evening's devastating tornados. As of this writing, there are 24 dead
in the metro. Media casualties include KSBI 52 and KMSI 88.1. Two other
stations, KVSP 1140 and KTLV 1220, both essentially daytimers, were in
the path of the storm, and it's unknown what kind of damage they've
suffered. (John Zondlo, Yukon, OK, May 4, amfmtvdx)
Well, none of those stations were worth seeing/hearing, anwyay, but I
did notice 52 on the air as usual since (gh)
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 29 ARLB029
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT May 4, 1999
To all radio amateurs
SB QST ARL ARLB029
ARLB029 COMMUNICATIONS EMERGENCY DECLARED
UNDER THE AUTHORITY OF SECTION 97.401 OF THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS
COMMISSION'S RULES AND REGULATIONS, (47 C.F.R. PART 97) A
COMMUNICATIONS EMERGENCY IS DECLARED TO EXIST IN THE OKLAHOMA AREA
DUE TO THE VIOLENT TORNADOES AND EXPECTED SEVERE WEATHER, REQUIRING
THE PROTECTION OF AMATEUR EMERGENCY COMMUNICATION FREQUENCIES.
AMATEURS ARE REQUIRED TO REFRAIN FROM USING 3900 KHZ FROM NOW UNTIL
MAY 7 AT 2100 CENTRAL STANDARD TIME. ALSO, AMATEURS ARE REQUIRED TO
REFRAIN FROM USING 7285 KHZ FOR THE SAME TIME FRAME. BOTH
FREQUENCIES ARE PROTECTED PLUS OR MINUS 3 KHZ UNLESS AMATEURS ARE
TAKING PART IN THE HANDLING OF EMERGENCY TRAFFIC. THIS ORDER IS
EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY. ARLAN K. VAN DOORN DEPUTY CHIEF COMPLIANCE
AND INFORMATION BUREAU FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION WASHINGTON,
DC. (via John Norfolk)
Kudos to MSNBC
Author: Dan
Date: 1999/05/04
Forum: alt.talk.weather
They had the very best coverage of the Oklahoma/Kansas tornadoes.
Kicked CNN in the teeth.
Damned good coverage, best video and "live" interviews of a
breaking event.
Should be good enough for a news emmy.
Way to go guys!! Welcome to the big leagues.
Re: Kudos to MSNBC
Author: Erick Church
Date: 1999/05/04
Forum: alt.talk.weather
Actually, they were leeching info from KFOR in OKC, which had very
good coverage, as did all local stations. When MSNBC was doing its
own coverage, it was poor at best. All night, I heard lots of
incorrect info, and their info was very inconsistent. Albeit, this
was true with all of the cable networks.
When a tornado was moving into the city of Tulsa at about midnight,
about a mile west of my home, KJRH the NBC affiliate stayed on the
air even as the funnel was on top of the station. Everyone in the
station had moved into the station basement except for 2 on-air
meteorologists. Goes to show why Oklahoma has the best severe
weather coverage.
Incidentally, I've been a storm spotter for nearly 15 years, and
I've never seen a tornado as large as the one that tracked across
the south OKC metro area. I was about 3 miles south of the storm,
and the power felt like the thing was on top of me. I've seen the
big Andover, KS tornado in 1991, the Hesston, KS tornado in 1990,
and other big storms, and this was the worst I've seen. It hits
close to home, as the tornado moved directly across the
neighborhood I grew up in in south OKC.
-Erick
ErickTUL@webtv.net
EChurch@RadioDigest.com
Re: Kudos to MSNBC
Author: Mike Schneider
Date: 1999/05/04
Forum: alt.talk.weather
n article <436-372EF403-1@newsd-142.iap.bryant.webtv.net>,
ErickTUL@webtv.net (Erick Church) wrote:
> Incidentally, I've been a storm spotter for nearly 15 years [etc]
There is one piece of video they are occasionally showing in which
the tornado (huge) is shown in the right of the frame, moving to
the left, and the camera zooms in to the ground in front of it with
a water tower in the distance. Debris flies and transformers blow
in brilliant flashes. Then everything goes black and swirly.
The only video I've seen of a tornado as big was that shot of an F5
tornado that went on to hit Chandler MN several years ago (*the*
widest wedge I've ever seen -- gargantuan).
Mike Schneider, VRWC Sentinel Outpost. "Autoguns, on-line!"
(via John Norfolk, OKCOK)
May 4:
I hope that you are all right after those tornadoes which ripped
through Oklahoma last night.
CNN was broadcasting the local Fox station in Oklahoma City, while CTV
News 1 was relaying KWTV between 10 & 11 PM ET. News was still
re-broadcasting KWTV as 4 AM ET May 4. 73, (Ivan Grishin, May 4)
As of mid-Tuesday afternoon, KFOR, KOCO and KWTV were still running
total tornado aftermath coverage, everything else pre-empted. Will we
lose a second total network primetime evening? (gh)
Tornado coverage: Not knowing anything was brewing, I turned on the OKC
TV stations Monday around 6:15 pm to check the weather, and they were
already in nonstop commercialfree tornado coverage preempting
everything. Did the suits in NY ever think that making May a sweeps
month with lots of new episodes rather than reruns would get them
lost forever to Oklahoma and other Tornado Alley viewers? Of course
not! But this was so bad I have nothing but applause for KFOR, KOCO and
KWTV. The Fox station, KOKH started Ally McBeal, but rather clumsily
would up covering up about half of it for storm warnings from its
second-rate news and weather department while everyone else was surely
glued to the Big 3.
We had more close calls in Enid, and spent the better part of an hour
in the storm cellar, but again so far no damage at WOR HQ. As of Tue
morning, it's not over yet. Many tnx to those who expressed their
concern (gh)
April 27:
OKC stations also rushed to Denver, unnecessarily. It's hard to know
the precise arrangements, but some reporters rushing to disasters
also free-lance for any station that wants their reports, or supply
them to a group ownership. When they say "back to you" without naming
the home anchors, you know its a "blind feed" but the home anchors
pretend they are actually in contact with the reporter (gh)
April 13:
OK MOZART FESTIVAL season is upon us again -- the radio season, that
is, concerts recorded last June; caught tail of one ending at 11 pm
CT Saturday April 10 on KCSC 90.1, so probably starts at 9 pm. Was the
one with Peter Schickele, I missed, drat. KOSU 91.7 no doubt will carry
this too; last spring it was Saturday afternoons in part of space
vacated by Metropolitan Opera (gh) [KOSU has been running a week after
KCSC, so we caught Schickele there; season ends in early July]
April 5:
KAUT, 43, OKC, the UPN affiliate and one of the last mono holdouts,
first noted with stereo pilot on Wed eve March 31 when I tuned in
for Star Trek: Voyager - the audio sounded sorta stereo ambient, but
no swooshing sound effects across the room, so I suspect it is another
phony synthesized stereo setup like KOCB, 34, the WB affiliate, has
been using for some time (gh)
KOED, 11, Tulsa, the OETA PBS station, continues to run dead channel
on its activated SAP whenever tropo brings in the signal strong
enough here to discern -- unlike KETA, 13, OKC, which has stereo but
no SAP. Possibly they use it for DVS on rare occasions this is
available? Elsewise, it could be a nuisance for ignorant viewers who
inadvertently turn on SAP and wonder why there's no sound and can't
get it back (gh)
KOSU, 91.7, Stillwater, brought us another excruciating foulup due
to automation and nobody minding the store, Sunday morning, April 4.
I've never heard anything like this before: two program sources
mixing, evidently the overnight jazz show, and Sound Money, when
checked at 6:08 am CDT - but instead of a blend, the two audio sources
were rapidly alternating, maybe 10 times a second in rapid pulses of
each. This evidently went on for at least an hour, still the case when
rechecked at 6:59, including during local promo -- so not strictly an
NPR network problem. On and on into beginning of Weekend Edition
Sunday, and finally fixed by 7:08 when I suspect someone actually
showed up at the studio to prepare a news capsule for 8:04 (gh)
April 3: JIMBO ON CLEAR CHANNEL
It's been a few years since any of the 50 kW behemoths audible here
in CNAm carried Jim Bohannon -- at least on the 9 pm-midnight live
feed, tho we happen to have him on a local in Enid, KGWA, 960, except
for stupid ballgames and when they screw up putting on Bruce Williams
instead, the most boring talkhost imaginable. And March 31, heard Jim
mention he was on KRLD, 1080, Dallas, and sure enough, he was. So
that covers at least the middle third of the country (gh)
KOKC, 1490, Guthrie, first noted back on the air after 3-4 weeks
silence, Sat April 3 in noon hour "Out to Lunch" with Caroldene Shriner
and her heavy Okie accent, ID as "Metro Talk 14" so still originating
at KNOR, 1400, Norman (gh)
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