WOBM’s Tower: Rising High Above Bayville Since 1968 [50 Memories in 50 Days]
Rising high above the Ocean County landscape, in today's 50 Memories in 50 Days, WOBM Chief Engineer Tom Trembly looks back at our landmark Bayville tower:
Equipment Then & Now: WOBM Tower
In 1968, WOBM signed on from Bayville with a 320 ft. tower located literally feet from the studio. The tower was painted with an orange and white “candy stripe” design.
Like most towers, it was constructed from 20 ft. prefab sections, each hoisted and stacked together with the aid of a “gin pole” placed at the tower top.
That tower served us well until 1988, when it was replaced with a brand new 500 ft. tower, constructed in part with the aid of a helicopter. This tower uses strobe lights that operate 24 hours a day, so it does not require orange and white paint. (The strobe lights automatically switch between a “bright mode” for daytime and a dimmer mode for nighttime.)
In 2016, Crown Castle – the current owner of the WOBM tower – assembled a “tower wrap” around the 1988 tower. Instead of prefab sections, it was bolted around the existing tower piece by piece like a gigantic erector set. Combined with additional guy wires, this reinforces the structure to keep it standing even in the strongest of hurricanes.
Here is a photo of the WOBM tower and antenna during the 2016 project. How would you like a job climbing up there???
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