Transmitters vs. Tornadoes: The Battle for Broadcast

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You don't get into broadcast engineering thinking you'll become a first responder, but that's exactly what happened on May 26, 2025, when an EF3 tornado tore through St. Louis. The powerful storm passed just 250 yards from the KMOX FM transmitter tower, knocking the heritage 50,000-watt station off the air and triggering an emergency response that reveals the true backbone of radio resilience.
This episode takes you behind the scenes as KMOX engineer Kyle Hammer – who had just turned 40 that day – navigates storm-damaged roads in the middle of the night to reach the transmitter site. What follows is a masterclass in engineering under pressure: assessing damage, implementing field improvisations, and restoring a vital communication channel when listeners needed it most. Within an hour of going dark, KMOX returned to the airwaves thanks not to automation or AI, but to human judgment, technical expertise, and sheer determination.
The story raises important questions about broadcast infrastructure in an era of increasingly extreme weather. While emergency alert systems, backup power, and redundant transmission paths are critical, they're only as effective as the people who understand and maintain them. As cellular networks fail and internet connections drop during disasters, radio's comparative simplicity becomes its greatest strength – but only when supported by skilled professionals willing to drive through debris-filled streets at midnight. This is what resilience looks like, and it's a powerful reminder that local radio still matters not just as entertainment, but as a lifeline when everything else fails.
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Chapters

1. Engineers As First Responders (00:00:00)

2. Tornado Strikes KMOX Tower (00:01:40)

3. Engineering Response Under Pressure (00:04:20)

4. The Human Element In Broadcasting (00:06:07)

5. Resilience And Key Takeaways (00:08:21)