WECT tower
TheWECT Towerwas a 2,000 ft (609.6m)-tall[1]mastused asantennaforTV-broadcasting,including broadcasting the analog television signal ofWECTchannel 6. It was built in 1969 and was situated alongNC 53south ofWhite LakeinColly TownshipinBladen County, North Carolina,United States. Before demolition, WECT Tower was, along with several other masts, the seventh tallest man-made structure ever created; and was not only the tallest structure inNorth Carolina,but also the tallest in theUnited Stateseast of theMississippi River.[citation needed]
On September 8, 2008, WECT ceased regular transmission of their analog signal from the Bladen County tower, relying instead on its newer digital transmitter inWinnabow.[2]Following the switch, the analog signal remained on air until the end of September as a "Nightlight",broadcasting an instructional video explaining installation ofconvertersandUHFantennas,[3][4]but many who were able to receive WECT's formerVHFanalog signal would no longer be able to receive the station at all digitally,[5]due to a shift to a UHF channel and a vastly smaller coverage area.[6]
WECT continued to utilize the former analog tower forelectronic news-gatheringpurposes before donating the tower and 77-acre (31 ha) site to theGreen Beret Foundationin 2011. On September 20, 2012 at 12:47 PM, the tower was demolished with explosives to be scrapped.[7]Proceeds from the sale of the land and the scrap metal of the tower will go to the foundation.[8]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^"ASR Registration 1006713".Federal Communications Commission.RetrievedSeptember 20,2019.
- ^WECT engineer says Big Switch took some improvisation, Si Cantwell, Wilmington Star-News, September 27, 2008
- ^WECT - Big Switch Minute: Answering your questions, August 13, 2008
- ^WECT Airs DTV Instructional Video, TVNEWSDAY, Sep 22, 2008
- ^Early Digital-TV Switch Has Flaw: Viewers Could Lose Certain Channels on Permanent Basis, Wall Street Journal, September 17, 2008,citedhere.
- ^FCC Looking For Lost Channels In Digital TV Switch, September 16, 2008
- ^"Demolition crews take down 2,000 ft. TV tower".WECT. 20 September 2012.Retrieved2012-09-20.
- ^"Fayetteville Observer:" Steel from demolition of TV tower in Bladen County to help [http://greenberetfoundation.org/ Green Beret Foundation] ", September 21, 2012".Archived fromthe originalon November 1, 2012.RetrievedSeptember 22,2012.
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External links
[edit]- "Listing 1006713".Antenna Structure Registration database.U.S.Federal Communications Commission.
- Skyscraper Page diagrams
- WECT TV6 ToweratStructurae
- Towers completed in 1969
- Buildings and structures in Bladen County, North Carolina
- Towers in North Carolina
- Radio masts and towers in the United States
- Demolished buildings and structures in North Carolina
- Buildings and structures demolished by controlled implosion
- 1969 establishments in North Carolina
- 2012 disestablishments in North Carolina
- Buildings and structures demolished in 2012
- Former radio masts and towers