"-=jd=-" wrote in message
8...
On Fri 02 Sep 2005 08:35:03p, "Brenda Ann" wrote in
message :


"SeeingEyeDog" wrote in message
...
Recently read that the WWL transmitter site has a one month fuel
supply. If the generator can hold out that long!
After that it's pffft.


I'm betting not. WWL is an important regional resource, and I'll wager
that when they begin to run low of diesel at the transmitter site that
they'll be able to get more diesel delivered to the site somehow. I do
know that diesel is being delivered to buildings in downtown New
Orleans. I gather from the fact that WWL is still on the air that the
site is above water and accessible (the engineers have been and gone
since the storm).



I wouldn't worry about running out of fuel, as certainly they would be
able
to get a resupply within a month. I would be more concerned about the
actual
generator running 24x7 for a month without suffering some mechanical
failure.
Unless it's not just a stand-by generator and is one of the more robust
ones.


*broadcast engineer hat on*

They don't usually bother with 'back up' generators. They install ones that
are good for the long haul. At KBOO, a 19,000 watt station, we had a 100KW
generator installed at the transmitter site. A commercial one, built to run
for 10,000 hours MTBF. Also sure they have a preventative maintenance
schedule to keep it in top shape. Easy enough to have silent times during
the wee hours to do the maintenance.