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"Wavescan" is a weekly program for long distance radio hobbyists produced by Dr. Adrian M. Peterson, Coordinator of International Relations for Adventist World Radio. AWR carries the program over many of its stations (including shortwave). Adrian Peterson is a highly regarded DXer and radio historian, and often includes features on radio history in his program. We are reproducing those features below, with Dr. Peterson's permission and assistance.


Wavescan 458, October 12, 2003

The Radio Scene During Cyclone Isabel

It was on Thursday, September 18, that Cyclone Isabel roared up from the Atlantic and plunged into the eastern coastal areas of the United States. While out at sea, Isabel contained winds at a speed of more than 120 miles per hour, though "she" was moving quite slowly out of the Atlantic into the coastal areas.

By the time Cyclone Isabel struck the Washington, DC area, the sustained winds had dropped down to a speed of about 60 miles per hour, though there was considerable damage and flooding in some areas. The major impact in the national capital area was tree debris on the roadways, and downed power lines. In fact, at the height of its impact, Cyclone Isabel caused such widespread damage that 5.7 million customers were without electrical power. This would mean that maybe up to 20 million people were without power.

It so happened that the leadership staff of Adventist World Radio from key locations around the world were gathered in Silver Spring, Maryland for planning meetings at the time. These meetings were held in the large headquarters building of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The building was closed at 3:00 pm on the day the storm struck, and it was not re-opened until four days later.

For those in the area at the time it was a strange world without electricity. Automatic doors in the hotels did not open, and elevators and escalators in public buildings did not move. Shops and businesses were closed, as were major high-level bridges and all airports. Church services over the weekend were conducted in darkened buildings, sometimes without the benefit of sound systems. In millions of homes the television screen was dark.

During the several days without power, some of the local radio stations were off the air, while others suffered at least brief periods of silence. All of the active on-air stations concentrated on emergency programming. However, even though some stations were operating from emergency power generators, yet none of them were heard to announce this fact on air.

News station WTOP, with studios in Washington, DC, and its high-powered transmitter in a nearby state, presented an almost continuous flow of information focused on events associated with the storm. This station was on the air from its usual location with 50 kW on 1500 kHz, and the programming is also relayed by another mediumwave station. This relay unit is WXTR in Frederick, Maryland, with 4300 watts on 820 kHz. There is a half-second delay in the programming, and this would suggest that the signal is relayed by satellite.

Another news station in the area is station WWRC, with 5 kW on 1260 kHz. This station in Silver Spring was known in earlier times as WGAY. Station WWRC takes a relay from the sound track of the satellite news channel CNN, and much of the programming at the time also focused on the cyclone.

Interestingly, one of the local TV stations in the area sent their news crew to an artificial island in the mouth of a river off the coast of North Carolina. This island, which was featured here in Wavescan a few weeks ago, and from which storm news on TV was reported, is known as Radio Island.