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KMST 88.5 FM Back To Full Service Following Major Repairs

An antenna bay is assembled before final placement on the KMST tower in Rolla, Missouri
An antenna bay is assembled before final placement on the KMST tower in Rolla, Missouri

In May, St. Louis Public Radio’s KMST transmitter in Rolla, Missouri, went off the air due to storm damage, leaving KMST 88.5 FM operating at low power for months while new equipment was being built and shipped.

An antenna bay, made up of gold- and silver-colored pipes and roughly the size of a grown man,  is assembled on the ground before final placement on the KMST tower
An antenna bay is assembled before final placement on the KMST tower in Rolla, Missouri

After many rain delays, technicians installed a new antenna and transmission line that connects the antenna with the transmitter. The KMST Rolla transmitter is now back to its full broadcast strength in Rolla and the surrounding area and has been operating at full power for the past two weeks with no technical glitches.

“I’ve driven around the Rolla area covering stories this past week and have been amazed at how strong the radio signal is in all directions,” says Rolla Correspondent Jonathan Ahl. “St. Louis Public Radio has invested in ensuring the Rolla region is well covered. It’s good to know that my local stories and those from my very talented colleagues across the state will be heard loud and clear throughout the KMST listening area.”

Public radio is a vital asset to the many communities it serves, providing timely information to rural listeners who may not have reliable internet access. These major repairs come at a high cost and were made possible by the generosity of station donors who believe that access to reliable information is essential.

Alongside listening to St. Louis Public Radio via local FM radio, KMST can be streamed here at stlpublicradio.org, via the station mobile app, or by asking your smart speaker to “play N-P-R.”

Copyright 2021 St. Louis Public Radio. To see more, visit St. Louis Public Radio.

Digital Media Manager Madalyn Painter joined the station in 2006, after working for three years as Online Communications Manager for KETC/Channel 9, St. Louis Public Television. Her professional awards include a 2005 APEX Award of Excellence for a Web site and three Regional Edward R. Murrow Awards. She has lived in St. Louis since graduating in 2000 from the University of Missouri-Columbia with a degree in Honors English. She enjoys gardening, visual art, dance, poetry, living in St. Louis City, and listening to public radio. Her favorite public radio shows are To the Best of Our Knowledge, RadioLab, Snap Judgment, Krista Tippett on Being, The Splendid Table, and This American Life.