Powell Pulls Panama City Plug
• In the wake of the catastrophic damage caused by Hurricane Michael last week, Powell Broadcasting has taken the unusual step of announcing it will cease broadcast operations in the Panama City, FL, market, which sustained a direct hit from the Cat 4 storm. Powell owns Classic Rock WRBA, Country WKNK (Kick’n 103.5), Adult Hits WASJ (105.1 Bob-FM) and Top 40 WPFM (Hot 107.9), all of which have been off the sir since Michael hit. In late September it was reported that Powell was spinning WPFM off to Educational Media Foundation (EMF) for $472,000; however, that was before Michael destroyed the cluster’s ability to remain viable. No word yet on whether that transaction will be finalized.
The news of Powell’s decision to permanently exit the market was initially reported by Radio Insight, which quoted Powell Broadcasting COO Robert Bond as saying, “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.” RAMP has learned that Powell has subsequently filed applications for “Notification of Suspension of Operations/Request for Silent STA” with the FCC for each property.
In a conversation with Powell News-Talk sister KSCJ-AM/Sioux City, IA, Powell Panama City Market Manager Jeff Storey explained that the cluster’s 150-foot STL tower snapped in half and collapsed upon the building, punching a hole in the roof and allowing water to flood the facility. Compounding this tragedy further, several now-unemployed Powell staffers, including WRBA PD/afternoon personality Greg “Fitzdog” Fitzgerald, lost their homes during the storm. Fitzgerald’s wife Tammy McGee has started a GoFundMe page seeking financial assistance during this nightmarish scenario.
