Steve K. Zylius, The Orange County Register
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KFI tower topples
The half-built tower in La Mirada, opposed by pilots at Fullerton airport, fails during construction.
LA MIRADA A half-built radio tower, under construction after years of debate over the safety of its location, crashed to the ground Tuesday, injuring a construction worker, city and radio-station officials said.
The
name of the injured worker was not released. His injuries were believed
to be minor, said Greg Ashlock, market manager of Clear Channel Radio.
The
worker was knocked off a construction platform next to the tower when
it fell, Ashlock said. The reason for the collapse was not immediately
clear but was believed to be construction-related, he said.
The
fallen tower remained in place Wednesday as engineers and insurance
crews tried to determine the cause of the collapse. Ashlock said the
guy wires that would typically prevent such a collapse had yet to be
secured because the tower was still under construction.
Clear
Channel, which operates KFI-AM radio, contracted with Seacomm Erectors
Inc. to build a 684-foot-tall tower at 16608 Trojan Way.
Construction began Saturday and had reached about 250 feet Tuesday when the tower came crashing down around 2:30 p.m.
“There are two or three theories as to what might have happened, but right now it’s all speculation,” Ashlock said.
The
tower was meant to replace a 760-foot-tall tower that was toppled in
December 2004 when a small plane crashed into it on approach to
Fullerton Municipal Airport less than two miles southeast of the tower.
The pilot and his wife were killed.
In recent months,
Fullerton airport and city officials joined local pilots in protesting
plans for the tower’s reconstruction, saying it was too tall and would
pose a hazard to pilots. They opposed a new tower taller than 500 feet.
The
La Mirada City Council unanimously approved the tower in January. KFI
officials expected the construction to take four weeks. Ashlock said
it’s not immediately clear how the collapse will affect that timetable.
KFI
continued to broadcast from another tower in Los Angeles, so the
collapse did not interrupt the radio station’s signal. A temporary
tower remained at the site of the collapse but had been turned off
during construction.
When completed, the tower will boost KFI’s signal to reach an area that includes 11 million people.
 | RadioTom wrote: Hmmm... After looking at the map, (without going to the aero charts), I'd say any pilot using Fullerton that manages to tangle with KFI's tower is doing a less than optimal approach or departure. I'm not a pilot, but I have several friends that are... and I AM a broadcast engineer type. Just offhand, I'd say the tower is well within the range of allowed structures; it looks to be more than 45 degrees; certainly more than 30 degrees, off the line of the runway. Big, tall tower painted up with garish orange and white stripes, and all sorts of red steady and flashing lights at night... Off to the side of the approach/departure lane... I mean, it's NOT rocket science! 3/19/2008 1:59:17 PM
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 | davidwhiting wrote: We're in the process of updating the impact of the tower on broadcasting. - site News Director 3/19/2008 1:49:51 PM
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 | mrt4prez wrote: ocbear:Wow!
You have a major h@rdon with the existance of this tower, huh? You must
live near it. I'm sure pilots arriving/departing via IFR know what
they're doing. John and Ken send their love. 3/19/2008 1:28:59 PM
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| ocbear wrote: Something
else to realize is that the tower may have played an indirect role in
several other fatal plane crashes at Fullerton airport. The tower
restricts the approach and departure possibilities, which is especially
critical in IFR (no visibility, flying on instruments) conditions. The
tower reduces the corridor of the safe approach and departure paths. I
am a commercial pilot, I have flown to many airports, and the KFI tower
is the most awkwardly placed man made obstacles I have ever seen. Stick
your antenna in the middle of the 91 freeway like a mattress pad
sitting in the lanes. Sure most drivers will be attentive enough to
drive around it but once in a while you'll get a fatality. 3/19/2008 1:10:38 PM
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| goodgame wrote: So Art Bell will be off the air for how long? 3/19/2008 12:01:52 PM
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| mrt4prez wrote: ocbear: It would be idiotic to blame the tower for killing a pilot. anaheimguy: check out Zeigler's therealkfi.com 3/19/2008 11:58:17 AM
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| ocbear wrote: MarkCarbon,
this tower is a pilot killer. Also here is a fact for you from the
NTSB: Historically, the airport property was used as an aircraft
landing field starting in 1913, and has been continuously operated as
an airport. The radio tower, located 1.77 nautical miles from the
airport, was constructed in 1948 3/19/2008 11:35:55 AM
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 | justasking wrote: Can we call Bill Handel Saturday morning and ask who should get sued over this? 3/19/2008 11:34:39 AM
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| anaheimguy wrote: Now
that I think about it, where was the former Sheriff? He can't be happy
about the ongoing Jon and Ken segment called "Taint the Jury Pool". Or did former evening host Zielger do this? 3/19/2008 11:20:34 AM
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| anaheimguy wrote: Gravity stinks. Wait a minute - are we sure nobody from CBS or Citadel had anything to do with this? 3/19/2008 11:17:22 AM
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