The National Weather Service radio transmitter at Hall’s Summit is still offline as of late Saturday afternoon.
The transmitter suffered an unspecified phone line issue Friday and has not been operating since. The Weather Service has been waiting for Verizon to troubleshoot the problems and make the needed repairs. There is no timetable for the transmitter to resume operation.
Additional information about neighboring transmitters and their frequencies can be found below.
8 am Saturday: Work on National Weather Service transmitter at Hall’s Summit to take place Saturday
With severe weather possible Saturday, the National Weather Service is awaiting work on a radio transmitter that serves most of the KVOE listening area and is currently offline.
The Weather Service says the Hall’s Summit transmitter suffered an unspecified phone line issue Friday. It says Verizon is sending a technician to diagnose and fix that issue Saturday.
The transmitter’s signal covers all of Lyon, Coffey and Osage counties, as well as Chase County east of Kansas Highway 177, northeast and parts of central Greenwood County and southwest Wabaunsee County including Harveyville. Additional information about neighboring transmitters that cover the KVOE listening area can be found below.
Strong to severe thunderstorms are possible through the mid-afternoon and early evening hours Saturday with all hazards possible, but hail and wind are the main risks. Be sure to stay with KVOE, KVOE.com and KVOE social media for updates through the day. Join KVOE’s social media channels on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter if you haven’t already done so. KVOE’s volunteer Storm Team spotter network is also ready to give reports as needed.
4 pm Friday: Hall’s Summit weather radio transmitter not operating; Americus outdoor siren delivered
No severe weather is expected across the KVOE listening area Friday night through Saturday morning, which is good because the National Weather Service’s transmitter at Hall’s Summit has not been operating Friday.
The Weather Service says there has been an unplanned outage affecting Weather Radio Transmitter KGG98 on frequency 162.425 megahertz. The map coverage area includes all of Lyon, Coffey and Osage counties, as well as Chase County east of Kansas Highway 177, northeast and parts of central Greenwood County and southwest Wabaunsee County including Harveyville. The current indication is a phone line is at least involved, and repairs will be based on the phone company’s schedule.
The Weather Service says there are neighboring transmitters that serve some of the affected counties. The closest is WXK91 at Topeka broadcasting on Channel 4 or frequency 162.475 MHz. Its signal covers Lyon and Osage counties as well as the north half of Coffey County.
Station WXL71 out of Abilene, operating on frequency 162.525, covers east Chase and southeast Morris counties, while station WWH22, located in Beaumont and operating on frequency 162.500 MHz, will cover Greenwood and southern Chase counties.
Separately, and in brighter news, Americus has its new outdoor warning siren in town and the siren is currently getting installed. The longstanding siren failed earlier this year, and the Americus City Council approved a $20,000 maximum quote from Table Rock Alerting Systems of Kimberly City, Missouri, to handle the replacement.
Lyon County deputies had announced plans to drive across town using their vehicle sirens as outdoor warning alerts in the case of tornadic activity.
Strong to severe thunderstorms are possible Saturday afternoon into early evening. All hazards are currently possible. Stay with KVOE, KVOE.com and KVOE social media for updates.
