To the editor:
The January ice storm created multiple headaches for Lincoln County — power outages, downed trees, road closures, fuel shortages, menacing branches, frozen car doors and serious physical health problems. One local casualty that is not as well known is that KYAQ radio’s transmitter took a fatal hit during the storm.
KYAQ 91.7 FM, is Lincoln County’s only community radio station, with an all-volunteer staff and funded by listener donations, grants and business underwriting. The broadcast signal reaches from Yachats to Otter Rock/Depoe Bay, east to Burnt Woods, and 30 miles out to sea.
Programming is a combination of local production and nationally distributed programs, covering a wide range of topics, from music to news and arts magazines. The station carries several shows in Spanish, with a focus on music and information for the Latinx community, and shows that address national Native American life. There are shows produced by and for members of the queer community.
The station’s studio is located in Newport, allowing broadcasters to give live updates during critical events. When the ice storm along with the power outage took out the transmitter, Lincoln County lost the one local station that can broadcast critical updates live.
Once the power came back and stayed on, KYAQ station manager Bill Dalbey installed a rented transmitter. Dalbey researched the resources available to KYAQ since a long-term rental is not an option for a radio station on a minimal budget. The result is that the station hopes to purchase a new transmitter (along with additional broadcast equipment) which will cost $13,000 to $15,000.
KYAQ typically gets by with old or aging equipment and replacing it depends on the financial support of listeners, often only after a piece of equipment has failed. But in the case of the transmitter, it’s not cost effective to try to repair given its age.
In more than 10 years since KYAQ started broadcasting, equipment failures have occurred repeatedly, causing drop-outs, a noisy signal and loss of the broadcast signal altogether. Commercial radio stations rely on advertising to support the cost of doing business, but KYAQ has no advertising. Luckily, KYAQ’s listening audience is very dedicated to the station’s ongoing survival and fundraising has been largely successful in the past.
To address the cost of purchasing a new transmitter, starting the week of Feb. 19, KYAQ will be emailing listeners, posting information on social media and sending out letters, describing the current situation with the failed transmitter and asking for financial support. Information about how to donate is available on the KYAQ website (kyaq.org), where general information about the station is located. Through the website, listeners can also listen to live streaming of the programs KYAQ carries, just in case a radio is in short supply.
KYAQ is broadcast on 91.7 FM and live streamed through its website, kyaq.org. The station studio is located at 324 N. Coast Highway in Newport. The email address is comments@kyaq.org, postal mail can be sent to KYAQ, PO Box 1664, Newport, Ore. 97365.
— Barbara Turrill/Newport
