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Vandalism at a transmitter site has knocked three Honolulu radio stations off the air for possibly the next two weeks.
Retro 97.1 airs music from the 1980s; K-Rock 101.5 is a classic rock station; and Nash 107.5 plays a mainstream country music format. The stations are not full-powered radio stations with four-letter call signs, but rather, carry different formats via three so-called FM translators. Their official FCC call signs are K246BR, K268BE and K298BA, respectively.
“We have new equipment ordered, but it will take a couple weeks. We will be back on the air as soon as we get all our new equipment,” said George Hochman, president of H. Hawaii Media, which owns the stations.
He declined to share details about the vandalism that occurred Jan. 12, but said it had been reported to police.
Police officials could not be immediately reached.
While the stations’ analog signals are off the air, their digital programming can be picked up on HD radios.
“All three stations can be heard on the HD signals of KORL at 101.1,” Hochman said.
