Kaua‘i’s North Shore Emergency Broadcast System radio outlet just got a boost, KKCR station manager Gwen Palagi states in a press release yesterday. Kaua‘i Community Radio’s emergency readiness has been improved with the recent installation of a new Caterpillar 20
Kaua‘i’s North Shore Emergency Broadcast System radio outlet just got a boost, KKCR station manager Gwen Palagi states in a press release yesterday.
Kaua‘i Community Radio’s emergency readiness has been improved with the recent installation of a new Caterpillar 20 kilowatt standby generator, which can provide continuous power for up to 48 hours without refueling during interruptions to regular utility power.
Obtained through grant funds plus community donations and volunteer energy, the system is ready for the 2006 hurricane season, and other potential disasters such as tsunamis.
Long time residents remember going weeks without electricity or telephone communications following hurricanes Dot, Iwa and Iniki, the press release states.
Instead, they relied on radio broadcasts heard on battery-operated portables or on vehicle radios for information about relief efforts and other news from around the world.
With KKCR’s added capability, information can now be heard as far away as Haena, the press release states.
Local carpenter Dave Spier built the weather shed over the generator, which came from Caterpillar dealer Hawthorne Pacific. Local electrician Don Ingram did the wiring and insured proper connection to the automatic transfer switch. Martin Bryant volunteered a mobile crane and crews to position the new unit on its concrete pad.
KKCR-FM is a listener-funded and volunteer run community radio station that broadcasts on 90.9 FM on the North Shore, 92.7 FM in Anahola, 91.9 FM on the rest of Kaua‘i, 104.7 FM on O‘ahu, 95.1 FM on cable, and worldwide on the web at www.kkcr.org.
