After sustaining “catastrophic damage” to its facility on Panama City Beach, Powell Broadcasting will cease broadcasting operations in the market.
Powell, which owns “Classic Rock 95.9” WRBA Springfield, Country “Kick’n 103.5” WKNK Callaway, Variety Hits “105.1 Bob-FM” WASJ Panama City Beach, and CHR “Hot 107.9” WPFM Panama City, sold WPFM to Educational Media Foundation for $472,000 in September. The Panama City Beach facility sustained damage as the Category 4 hurricane made landfall this week.
Powell Panama City Market Manager Jeff Storey told sister station 1360 KSCJ Sioux City IA yesterday that their 150 foot STL tower snapped in half punching a hole in the roof of the studio building allowing water to rush in.
Powell Broadcasting COO Robert Bond told RadioInsight, “We have made the difficult decision to cease broadcasting operations in Panama City. Hurricane Michael did catastrophic damage to our physical plant to the point that rebuilding was uneconomic. We wish the entire Panama City community Godspeed in rebuilding.”
WKNK morning hosts Tiffany ‘Flip Flop’ Dunning and Shaun Streeter, who had been giving some of the most detailed storm updates in the market via the WKNK Facebook page are now doing so on their own morning show page.
Some of the now unemployed staffers of the company lost their homes including WRBA PD/afternoon host Greg ‘Fitzdog’ Fitzgerald whose wife has started a GoFundMe seeking assistance.
In addition to Panama City, Powell Broadcasting owns six stations in the Sioux City IA market.
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