KCRW Off Santa Barbara Air Till Saturday

KCRW, the radio station from Santa Monica City College popular for its news coverage and eclectic music programming, is off the air in Santa Barbara due to technical difficulties. In a press release issued on Tuesday afternoon from the station – which broadcasts in Santa Barbara and Goleta at 106.9 FM – the earliest fix won’t be until Saturday, although the channel can still be heard streaming online at kcrw.com.

According to the station’s chief engineer Steve Herbert, the station sends a signal from an Oxnard antenna, which is picked up by a “rebroadcaster” in Goleta. But because of an antenna system failure in Oxnard, the Goleta transmitter is not receiving a clear signal. So, explained Herbert, “We have been forced to turn off 106.9 for the time being.”

The delay until this weekend is because the station shares the Oxnard tower with other broadcasters, so they cannot climb the tower for fear of interrupting other radio broadcasts. They won’t be able to assess the problem until Saturday.

In the meantime, check out the Web site or tune into KCSB 91.9 FM for music and news or KCLU 102.3 FM for your NPR fix.