The Tribune

By SANCHESKA BROWN

Tribune Staff Reporter

sbrown@tribunemedia.net

A BRAZEN daylight theft of a transmission line, presumably for copper, at Island FM’s transmission site on Saturday knocked out the radio station for more than 24 hours this weekend.

Eddie Carter, the station’s programming manager, said this latest theft is one of many in the past several months that has cost the radio station tens of thousands of dollars.

Mr Carter told The Tribune that the crime, coupled with “challenges” due to the Bahamas Electricity Corporation’s recent blackouts, makes it “very difficult” for small and medium sized businesses to stay open.

“In the past 18 months we have had our diesel stolen twice, the control panel for the generator stolen and transmission lines stolen for copper,” he said yesterday. “This weekend, the thieves cut the transmission line that goes from the transmitter to the antennas completely eliminating the signal coming from the station. This happened at 1pm on Saturday in broad daylight. We assume they are stealing it for the copper.

“We worked hard all day Saturday and with the help of 100 JAMZ and The Tribune media (group) we were able to get back on the air Sunday, only to be turned off Monday morning, during peak hours, by BEC,” Mr Carter said, referring to problems at BEC which led to power outages across the island yesterday.

“These challenges are making it extremely difficult for medium and small businesses to make it work. We should not need generators with the high price we are paying for electricity, it should be more consistent. Then there is the crime, we have to somehow come up with a significant amount of money to create a fortress at the tower site on the hill in St Augustine’s (College), to try and keep these criminals out.”

Mr Carter said Island FM has spent more than $50,000 on generators, fuel and security and still it is not enough to keep thieves out and the station on air consistently.

“They started stealing diesel about 18 months ago, so I stop putting diesel in the tank, then they stole the control panel from the generator. To date we have spent about $10,000 in security, lost about $12,000 worth of diesel and had to replace numerous cables. They are even chipping away the door we have on the property that is housing the equipment trying to get in. We have a fence around the site but it is not enough,” he said.

“The money we spend replacing what is being stolen, we could have been doing upgrades or giving our staff bonuses but we have to buy back and fix what the criminals are taking. Our clients are understanding, thank God for that, but it is stopping us from getting new business because new clients will think we are unreliable. The police have promised to increase security in the area, but in all honesty unless they are there 24 hours a day, there is nothing much they can do. We are just trying to keep Bahamian music and culture going, but it is becoming tougher and tougher.”

Several radio stations, including the Broadcasting Corporation of the Bahamas, have been hit by copper thieves in the past few years.

The Bahamas Telecommunications Company as well as BEC have also been plagued by numerous thefts.

The thefts have renewed calls for the government to ban the export of copper. In 2011, widespread copper theft in addition to other metals led the Ingraham administration to order a scrap metal ban for 90 days and the export of copper permanently.

The ban was later lifted and copper export was placed under more stringent terms outlined in an amendment to the Customs Management Act.

Photos: Lamond Johnson/

Tribune Staff