Firefighters are mopping up after a fire destroyed the WTXY 103.9 FM broadcasting facility tonight (Saturday).
The building on Virgil Street beside Central Baptist Church in Whiteville housed the transmitters and other equipment, WTXY General Manager Jeff Allen Jones said. The station’s studio is on Madison Street in downtown Whiteville.
Fire Marshal Hal Lowder Jr. said the cause of the fire is currently under investigation. The building was a total loss. The fire was reported around 8 p.m.
The building has been completely inundated by flooding three times, including hurricanes Matthew and Florence. It housed all operations for the stations until the early 2000s, and the studio was used intermittently since around 2014.
Jones said the radio station will be streaming live via the Kool 103.9 website within the next day or so.
“We’re still here, and we’re going to rebuild,” he said. “WTXY will still be providing news and music to Columbus County. We appreciate everyone’s support right now. It’s not going to be easy, but we’ll be back on your radio soon.”
Whiteville Fire was assisted by mutual aid from Brunswick and Chadbourn, along with Whiteville Rescue.
Editor’s note: WTXY and Columbuscountynews.com (CCN) are media partners. Jones and Glasgow Hicks are owners of WTXY, and Jones is sole owner of CCN.
