Current:Home > Contact-usA 200-foot radio tower in Alabama is reportedly stolen. The crime has police baffled.-LoTradeCoin
A 200-foot radio tower in Alabama is reportedly stolen. The crime has police baffled.
View Date:2025-01-11 12:32:28
A 200-foot radio tower in Alabama was stolen and has gone missing without a trace, taking down an AM station with it. The crime left the station's radio manager and police blown away and confused, according to media outlets.
“I have tried all weekend to figure it out, and I just can’t," Brett Elmore, the station's general manager of WJLX’s AM Station in Jasper, Alabama, said in a statement. "I have been in the radio business, around it all my life and then in it professionally for 26 years, and I can say I have never heard of anything like this. I can say I’ve seen it all now.”
According to the statement, Elmore learned about the theft of WJLX's tower on last Friday. A landscaping company went down to the tower on Feb. 2, which was located in a wooded area behind a local poultry plant, reports the Guardian, to clean up the property. But when they got there, they realized someone else had done it and taken way more than they needed to.
According to the Guardian, Elmore believes the thieves stole the tower to make money off selling the metal.
The GM told the Guardian that around six months ago, a different station that was close by had an AC unit, copper pipes, and other materials stolen from them. Elmore is not sure if the two are connected.
When speaking with the media outlet, Elmore added that Jasper has always supported its local stations.
"The sad part is that Jasper has always been a radio town," he told the Guardian.
More radio news:Radio crew's 'bathwater' stunt leads to Jacob Elordi being accused of assault in Australia
Radio tower stolen: How much will it cost to replace?
The station has started a GoFundMe to help recuperate the cost of the tower.
Since the property wasn't insured, Elmore believes it would cost $60,000 to replace the tower, according to a statement on the station's GoFundMe.
It's "more money than we have," he told the Guardian.
So far, they have raised $766 out of the $60,000 required.
"This is a major setback for a small operation like ours," said Elmore in a statement. "But I have faith that we will uncover the culprits. This is a federal crime, and they will realize it wasn’t worth it.”
Radio silent: Station forced off-air due to reported theft
On the station's website, it reports that it was trying to work with the FCC for temporary authority to continue business as usual on FM radio while they rebuild their tower and get back onto the AM side of the radio
But Thursday morning, the FCC told them they would not be allowed to broadcast. While the station does have an FM transmitter and tower, the FCC said they would have to go off the air since it isn't allowed to operate on the FM side of things while their AM station is off-air, reports the Guardian.
“Now we’re silent, but we won’t be silent for long," Elmore said to the Guardian. "I’m gonna work tirelessly to get this thing back up and running, one way or the other.”
It's unclear how long the rebuild process will actually take, Alabama news outlet WSFA reports. According to a statement given to WSFA by the radio station, they did shut down their FM tower, but the station will continue to its broadcast online.
Investigation into stolen radio tower underway
The Guardian says Elmore is still hopeful that more will be revealed, either on surveillance video from the poultry factory or a witness who worked at the plant and saw what happened.
In the station's statement, they confirmed that the Jasper Police Department is investigating the tower theft.
They're urging anyone with information regarding the incident to contact either JPD at 205-221-2122 or Crime Stoppers at 205-221-505.
veryGood! (53)
Related
- AI could help scale humanitarian responses. But it could also have big downsides
- Why Chris Pratt and Katherine Schwarzenegger Are Facing Backlash Over Demolishing a Los Angeles Home
- The Many Colorful Things Dominic West Has Said About Cheating and Extramarital Affairs
- Jury deliberating in Iraq Abu Ghraib prison abuse civil case; contractor casts blame on Army
- Tony Hinchcliffe refuses to apologize after calling Puerto Rico 'garbage' at Trump rally
- A suburban Seattle police officer faces murder trial in the death of a man outside convenience store
- Taylor Swift Reveals the Real Meaning Behind The Tortured Poets Department Songs
- Cleveland to pay $4.8M to family of teen killed by stolen car during police chase
- Denzel Washington teases retirement — and a role in 'Black Panther 3'
- Céline Dion Gives Health Update Amid Battle With Stiff-Person Syndrome
Ranking
- Could trad wives, influencers have sparked the red wave among female voters?
- U.S. agrees to withdraw troops from Niger
- Bluey is all grown up in 'Surprise' episode on Disney+. Now fans are even more confused.
- Why Nicola Peltz Beckham Wasn’t at Mother-in-Law Victoria Beckham’s Birthday Party
- Cowboys owner Jerry Jones responds to CeeDee Lamb's excuse about curtains at AT&T Stadium
- What happened to Kid Cudi? Coachella set ends abruptly after broken foot
- Israeli airstrike on a house kills at least 9 in southern Gaza city of Rafah, including 6 children
- Real Housewives' Kyle Richards Says People Think She Has Fake Lashes When She Uses This $9 Mascara
Recommendation
-
Biden EPA to charge first-ever ‘methane fee’ for drilling waste by oil and gas companies
-
2nd victim dies from injuries after Texas man drove stolen semitrailer into building, officials say
-
The Best Under-the-Radar, Eco-Friendly Fashion & Beauty Brands that You Need to Know
-
Below Deck's Captain Kerry Titheradge Fires 3rd Season 11 Crewmember
-
When do new episodes of 'Cobra Kai' Season 6 come out? Release date, cast, where to watch
-
Columbia University holds remote classes as pro-Palestinian tent city returns; NYPD says its options are limited
-
2 hunters may have died of prion disease from eating contaminated deer meat, researchers say
-
Taylor Swift Reveals the Real Meaning Behind The Tortured Poets Department Songs