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Senior Road Tower
View on WikipediaThe Senior Road Tower is a guyed mast for FM and TV broadcasting, measuring 1,971 feet (601 m) tall, located in unincorporated northeastern Fort Bend County near Missouri City, Texas, United States.
The present mast was built in 1983. It replaced a previous tower that collapsed in a construction accident in December 1982, killing five workers. While historically also used for television, its primary purpose was and is to transmit FM radio stations.
First tower
[edit]While a number of Houston FM radio stations broadcast from One Shell Plaza and other sites in downtown Houston, the late 1970s saw the construction of several new, taller buildings in the downtown area that created issues for regional coverage, particularly the Texas Commerce Tower and Allied Bank Plaza. In 1980, ten Houston radio stations, later reduced to nine—KFMK, KIKK, KILT, KLEF, KLOL, KODA, KRBE, KSRR, and KYND—began to scout out a site for a new facility in an area that was becoming a cluster of transmission towers.[1] Television stations KTRK-TV and KRIV were also building tall towers near this site. The original plan was to build the mast on Senior Road, and the consortium of stations became known as the Senior Road Tower Group. However, plans changed, and the eventual site was not on Senior Road.[2] The radio stations were joined in the venture by KTXH, a new Houston television station.[2]
Tower work began in 1982 but came to a brief halt due to a dispute over mineral rights to the tower site. In an apparent oversight, the title company failed to notice that Lew D. French Jr. had leased the mineral rights, planning to drill for oil on the property. He drove by and asked what was going on, starting a legal action that led to a temporary stay on construction.[3] Construction resumed after an out-of-court settlement.[4] Tower erection began in October, with the antenna for KTXH television being raised first.[4] That station began broadcasting on November 7.[5] It was anticipated that the FM stations would begin using the mast on February 1, 1983.[6]
Construction accident
[edit]Nearly a month after KTXH began broadcasting, work reached a fever pitch on the FM transmission facility. On December 6, workers hoisted the first half of the antenna structure onto the tower, and it was anticipated that the final 75-foot (23 m) structure would be hoisted onto the tower the next day, December 7. A KIKK employee was videotaping the event. While the item was being hoisted into place, the antenna fell from the cable pulling it up. It fell on one of the guy wires, which caused the tower to collapse. Five men strapped to the antenna died; the five employees, all out-of-state workers from World Wide Tower Service of New Jersey, were Gene Crosby, David Stewart, Don Owens, Johnny Wilson, and Johnny Bratten. Bodies were dismembered by the failing guy wires.[7] World Wide Tower was subcontracted by Stainless Inc., the firm that manufactured the tower.[8] Three men, employed by a Houston roofing firm working on the roof of the transmitter building, were injured. KTXH suffered a $1.5 million loss in equipment, including the transmitter, on which the falling mast collapsed.[7][9] A man in the transmitter building saw the tower collapse and fled.[10]
In the wake of the accident, the Senior Road Tower Group assigned blame to a clamping device that fastened the antenna to the cable.[9] The construction company had to jury-rig a lifting device of their own design, as the antenna lifting points were not designed for the final lift. The cable from the gin pole would intersect the dish of the antenna and damage it. The design analysis of the construction company was flawed, leading them to underestimate the load on the bolts by a factor of seven. In addition, the U-bolts they used were defective; the manufacturer rated them for twice the load they were good for. One of the U-bolts failed, causing the antenna to fall and snap two of the guy wires holding the tower upright.[11]
For KTXH, the loss of the Senior Road Tower left the station off the air for two months; the station immediately ordered a new transmitter.[12] The station filed a $42 million lawsuit, alleging negligent construction and claiming a $7 million loss in equipment and advertising for the 61 days it was out of service.[13][14] Even while broadcasting from a temporary facility atop the Allied Bank Plaza, KTXH continued to post competitive numbers against KRIV.[15]
In addition to the lawsuit filed by KTXH, the family of one of the victims sued for $2 million, as did several of the injured. As a result of the then-pending litigation, investigations by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration and by insurers were not publicly released.[14] After a 10-day trial, in February 1985, a federal jury awarded nearly $19 million to the families of the victims, with Stainless to pay 100 percent of the damages;[16] this came after a settlement agreement for $21 million was partially withdrawn.[17] The $19 million award was reduced to $14 million by a federal judge who ruled the jury had improperly awarded punitive damages and replaced by a $6.4 million award in a new settlement.[18] Combined with $11 million in payments from Harris and World Wide Tower, the total received by the families was $17.4 million.[18]
Second tower
[edit]The Senior Road Tower Group met a week later and opted to continue the project. Jay Jones, the vice president of KLOL, told Billboard, "We've been delayed significantly, but FM stations in Houston have a real problem with their signal, and we've got to do something about it."[8] The foundation and guy anchors remained in usable condition,[7] and the $4 million loss was insured.[8]
After further delays caused by rain and Hurricane Alicia, work was completed in October 1983 on the new mast, which was identical to the one that collapsed.[19][14] Of the nine FM stations, all still at the site, six migrated from One Shell Plaza and three from other facilities.[20] KTXH began migrating off the mast when it built its digital transmission facility at a new, purpose-built tower in 1999.[21]
Tower users
[edit]The Senior Road Tower is used by the following radio stations:[22]
- KKBQ (92.9 FM)
- KTBZ-FM 94.5
- KKHH (95.7 FM)
- KHMX (96.5 FM)
- KBXX (97.9 FM)
- KODA (99.1 FM)
- KILT-FM 100.3
- KLOL (101.1 FM)
- KRBE (104.1 FM)
The tower has wrap-around outside platforms at 900, 1,100, and 1,400 feet on the tower. The platforms support antennas and equipment cabinets used by various two way radio systems and remote pickup unit (RPU) receivers for radio broadcasters.
Heights:
- Elevation of Site Above Mean Sea Level: 24.1 m (79 ft)
- Overall Height Above Ground (AGL): 600.7 m (1,971 ft)
- Overall Height Above Mean Sea Level: 624.5 m (2,049 ft)
- Overall Height Above Ground w/o Appurtenances: 569.8 m (1,869 ft)
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Grace, Bob (May 24, 1980). "Planned broadcast tower would solve FM reception woes". Houston Chronicle. p. 3:5.
- ^ a b Grace, Bob (March 20, 1982). "Progress on tower takes stations one step closer to clearer signals". Houston Chronicle. p. 7:5.
- ^ Grace, Bob (August 14, 1982). "Mineral rights dispute delaying transmitting tower work". Houston Chronicle. p. 3:9.
- ^ a b Hodges, Ann (August 27, 1982). "Bayou City waterways may be next site on TV's law 'n' order turf". Houston Chronicle. p. 5:3.
- ^ Hodges, Ann (November 7, 1982). "Welcome aboard, Channel 20". Houston Chronicle. p. TV Chronilog 6.
- ^ Grace, Bob (September 4, 1982). "Roll up your sleeves and tune in—it's football season". Houston Chronicle. p. 3:9.
- ^ a b c Nelson, Rick; Evans, P.I. (December 8, 1982). "5 die in collapse of broadcast tower". Houston Chronicle (Morning ed.). pp. 1, 16.
- ^ a b c Sacks, Leo (December 25, 1982). "Despite Fatal Accident: Houston Tower Will Go Up". Billboard. p. 85. ProQuest 1438634796.
- ^ a b Evans, P.I. (December 9, 1982). "Clamping-device failure blamed in tower collapse". Houston Chronicle. pp. 1:1, 16.
- ^ "At least 5 killed as TV-radio tower collapses". Houston Chronicle (Evening Final ed.). December 7, 1982. p. 1:1.
- ^ "TV Antenna Collapse". Engineering.com. Archived from the original (online pdf) on December 25, 2010. Retrieved July 6, 2018.
Adapted from material by the Department of Philosophy and Department of Mechanical Engineering Texas A&M University NSF Grant Number DIR-9012252
- ^ "Ch. 20 sets target date of late February". Houston Chronicle. January 14, 1983. p. 5:8.
- ^ "Channel 20 sues firms in fatal tower collapse". Houston Chronicle. August 12, 1983. p. 1:28.
- ^ a b c Evans, P.I. (October 17, 1983). "Broadcast tower that crashed killing 5 is rebuilt". Houston Chronicle. p. 1:3.
- ^ Hodges, Ann (September 6, 1983). "Ch. 20 wins top Nielsen ratings for independents". Houston Chronicle. p. 4:4.
- ^ "Nearly $19 million awarded in 5 tower collapse deaths". Houston Chronicle. February 24, 1985. p. 1:18.
- ^ "Tower collapse deal withdrawn". Houston Chronicle. December 1, 1984. p. 1:32.
- ^ a b "Settlement is awarded in collapse of tower". Houston Chronicle. August 27, 1985. p. 3:14.
- ^ Grace, Bob (October 1, 1983). "Ch. 20 and FM stations may be using new tower by next weekend". Houston Chronicle. p. 4:16.
- ^ Fybush, Scott (September 25, 2020). "Site of the Week 9/25/2020: Houston's Senior Road FM Master Tower". fybush.com. Archived from the original on November 6, 2022. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
- ^ "Houston to get $7m DTV tower" (PDF). Broadcasting & Cable. March 22, 1999. p. 44. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 8, 2021. Retrieved October 7, 2022 – via World Radio History.
- ^ "Tower Payload, Senior Road Tower". FCCdata.org. Archived from the original on November 5, 2022. Retrieved November 5, 2022.
External links
[edit]- FCC Antenna Structure Registration
- Skyscraperpage.com entry on Senior Road Tower (includes diagram)
- 95.510272&lat=29.576400&w=600&h=400&f=&fs=8&fc=ffffff99&logo=1&lp=---None--- USGS aerial image of Senior Road Tower
- Senior Road Tower at Structurae
- TV Antenna Tower Collapse, Engineering Ethics Case Study, Texas A&M University
- Engineering Disasters History Channel Video
Senior Road Tower
View on GrokipediaOverview
Location
The Senior Road Tower is located at 29°34′35″N 95°30′37″W in unincorporated northeastern Fort Bend County, Texas, near Missouri City.[4] The site lies approximately 20 miles southwest of downtown Houston.[2] The location was chosen for its flat terrain and sufficient distance from urban development, which reduced potential interference with FM broadcast signals obstructed by downtown Houston's growing skyline of skyscrapers.[2] The site is situated atop the Blue Ridge Salt Dome, offering geological stability suitable for tall antenna foundations amid the region's salt formations.[3] An initial proposed site off Senior Road in Missouri City was rejected by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for clearance issues, leading to the selection of a nearby parcel off McHard Road (also known as FM 2234), within a designated FAA-approved zone.[2] The tower is owned by the Senior Road Tower Group, a consortium formed in the late 1970s by nine Houston-area FM radio stations—including affiliates of major networks such as ABC, Westinghouse, and Viacom—to collectively address signal propagation challenges posed by the city's expanding high-rise buildings.[5][6] Site preparation for the original tower began in 1982 but faced delays due to a dispute over mineral rights, as Texas law grants mineral rights holders precedence over surface landowners, requiring resolution before construction could proceed.[5]Purpose and Design
The Senior Road Tower serves primarily as a guyed mast for FM radio broadcasting and, historically, television transmission, designed to enhance signal propagation across the Houston metropolitan area by elevating antennas above urban obstructions and multipath interference.[2] This elevated positioning allows for stronger, more reliable signals compared to downtown locations, supporting efficient coverage for multiple broadcasters in a region prone to signal challenges from high-rise buildings and terrain.[2] The tower's role as a shared facility underscores its importance in regional communications infrastructure, facilitating widespread access to radio and television services.[1] Initiated by the Senior Road Tower Group—a joint venture among several FM radio stations and the UHF television station KTXH—the tower embodies a cost-sharing antenna system concept aimed at reducing individual construction and maintenance expenses for participating broadcasters.[2] By combining resources, the group enabled multiple stations to utilize a single, high-capacity structure rather than building separate towers, promoting economic efficiency in an era of expanding broadcast needs.[2] This collaborative approach was particularly advantageous for Class C FM stations operating at 100 kW effective radiated power, allowing them to achieve optimal performance without prohibitive individual investments.[2] Structurally, the original tower was engineered as a guyed lattice mast, featuring a triangular framework of steel supported by multiple guy wires anchored to the ground for enhanced stability against wind loads and structural stresses common to tall broadcast masts.[7] The design specified a planned height of approximately 1,800 feet, incorporating platforms for antenna arrays and equipment to accommodate shared usage.[3]First Tower
Construction
The Senior Road Tower project was initiated in the late 1970s by the Senior Road Tower Group, a consortium of Houston-area broadcasters seeking to address FM signal interference caused by the growing number of downtown skyscrapers, such as One Shell Plaza, which disrupted signal propagation through multipath distortion.[2] The tower was planned as a shared facility primarily for FM radio stations, with provisions for television broadcasting, to provide a central, elevated site for improved coverage across the region.[8] Site preparation began in 1982, involving the clearing of the plot and initial foundation work for the guy anchors, which were essential for stabilizing the planned 1,800-foot structure; the site was ultimately relocated slightly west to McHard Road (FM 2234) following an FAA height denial at the original location.[2] The erection phase employed the gin pole method, a standard technique for assembling tall lattice towers, where sections were hoisted incrementally using a temporary pole mounted atop the growing structure.[2] Crews from Stainless, Inc. and World Wide Towers Services, Inc. handled the assembly of the 1,800-foot lattice steel sections, working methodically to integrate the guy wires and prepare for antenna installation, with the project reaching near completion by December 1982.[2][9]Collapse
On December 7, 1982, the first Senior Road Tower, under construction in Missouri City, Texas, catastrophically collapsed during the hoisting of its final 60-foot antenna section at approximately 1,800 feet height.[10] The incident was captured on video by engineer Andy Hurdack, who was documenting the installation process from the ground.[11] The 6-ton antenna section, equipped with microwave baskets, was being lifted using a gin pole when the failure occurred, leading to the entire structure buckling and falling in just 17 seconds.[7][6] The collapse was triggered by the failure of a makeshift clamping device on the gin pole, specifically insufficiently sized U-bolts that were not rated for the load, causing the antenna section to break free.[7] This detachment severed a critical guy wire, destabilizing the tower and initiating a progressive failure that brought down the entire mast onto the adjacent transmitter building.[6] The faulty bolts, part of an improvised lifting lug extension designed by the construction team, highlighted flaws in on-site engineering adaptations not vetted through formal analysis.[7] The accident resulted in five fatalities among the workers: two stationed on the tower and three on the antenna section being hoisted, with no survivors from the upper levels.[7] The victims included technicians employed by the rigging contractor, and three others on the ground sustained injuries from debris.[6] Rescue efforts were hampered by the twisted wreckage spanning over 1,800 feet, and the bodies were recovered amid severe structural damage estimated at $5 million to $7 million.[6][10] In the immediate aftermath, broadcast operations were severely disrupted, with KTXH-TV, the primary tenant, going off-air for approximately two months due to the destruction of its transmitter facilities.[7] The nine FM radio stations co-owning the project also faced outages, prompting emergency meetings to assess reconstruction feasibility.[6] The video footage recorded by Hurdack proved instrumental in the subsequent investigation, providing clear evidence of the sequence of events.[11] Legal proceedings followed swiftly, with Channel 20, Inc. (owner of KTXH-TV) filing a lawsuit against the contractors alleging negligence in construction practices. Personal injury and wrongful death claims by the families of the deceased were settled out of court prior to trial. In a related federal case, the general contractor, Stainless, Inc., was found 100% liable for negligence; the bolt manufacturer also settled separately due to substandard components.[9][7] The incident underscored critical engineering vulnerabilities in tower construction, particularly the risks of improvised hardware like U-bolts under high loads and inadequate gin pole configurations.[7] Post-accident analyses emphasized the need for rigorous bolt integrity testing and standardized safety protocols for gin poles, influencing safety regulations and engineering practices in tower construction.[7] These lessons promoted better inter-party communication between engineers, contractors, and manufacturers to prevent similar failures in tall structures.[7]Second Tower
Reconstruction
Following the collapse of the original tower on December 7, 1982, due to a faulty clamping device during antenna installation, the broadcasting consortium decided to rebuild immediately at the same Missouri City site to maintain the planned height advantage over downtown alternatives and minimize costs associated with redesign.[2][6] Construction began in early 1983, reusing the existing foundation to expedite the process, with the new guyed mast erected using an identical design to the failed structure. Contractors were involved, but the project incorporated enhanced safety protocols in response to the incident, including stricter structural engineering oversight and new industry regulations on assembly procedures prompted by lawsuits and investigations.[2][1] Erection proceeded from January through October 1983, though progress was delayed by persistent heavy rains in the region and the impact of Hurricane Alicia, which struck the Houston area on August 18, 1983, causing widespread disruptions.[2][12] The tower became fully operational by late 1983, enabling initial FM stations such as KKBQ (92.9 MHz), KODA (99.1 MHz), and KILT-FM (100.3 MHz) to relocate from temporary downtown transmitter sites to the new facility.[2]Specifications
The second Senior Road Tower is a guyed lattice mast measuring 1,971 feet (601 meters) above ground level (AGL) and 2,049 feet (624 meters) above mean sea level (AMSL), with the site elevation at approximately 79 feet (24 meters) AMSL.[1][13] The structure consists of a steel lattice mast supported by three sets of guy wires for enhanced stability, particularly suited to the high wind loads common in Gulf Coast conditions. Wrap-around platforms are located at 900 feet, 1,100 feet, and 1,400 feet AGL, providing space for antenna mounting and equipment shelters.[1][14] Its steel construction is designed to accommodate multiple FM broadcast antennas with capacities up to 100 kW each, as well as former television transmission equipment, enabling shared use by several stations. The tower is registered under FCC Antenna Structure Registration number 1050005 and classified specifically for broadcasting purposes.[15][13][14]Broadcasting Usage
Historical Tenants
Upon its completion in 1983, the Senior Road Tower initially hosted nine FM radio stations operated by the Senior Road Tower Group, including KODA (99.1 FM) and KLOL (101.1 FM), which utilized a shared antenna system for transmission.[2] These stations, along with KTXH-TV (Channel 20), formed the tower's first major broadcasting tenants, marking a significant consolidation of Houston-area FM signals at the 1,971-foot (601 m) structure in Fort Bend County.[2] KTXH-TV began operations from the tower in 1983, broadcasting an analog UHF signal to serve the greater Houston metropolitan area until its relocation to another site.[2] This move vacated the tower's television tenancy, shifting focus primarily to FM radio.[2] Many of these early FM tenants, such as KODA and KLOL, relocated from downtown sites including One Shell Plaza and the Tenneco Building, where urban obstructions had limited signal propagation.[2] The tower's elevated position enabled these stations to escape multipath interference and extend coverage more effectively into Houston's suburbs and surrounding rural areas.[2] This co-location arrangement provided substantial operational savings for the participating stations by sharing maintenance, access, and infrastructure costs, while enhancing overall signal reliability and reach across a broader geographic footprint.[2]Current Tenants
The Senior Road Tower serves as a primary transmission site for nine FM radio stations in the Houston metropolitan area as of November 2025. These stations utilize the tower's extensive height to achieve broad coverage across the region, broadcasting at effective radiated powers (ERP) up to 100 kW.[2]| Station | Frequency | Owner |
|---|---|---|
| KKBQ | 92.9 MHz | Urban One |
| KTBZ-FM | 94.5 MHz | iHeartMedia |
| KKHH | 95.7 MHz | Audacy |
| KHMX | 96.5 MHz | Audacy |
| KBXX | 97.9 MHz | Urban One |
| KODA | 99.1 MHz | iHeartMedia |
| KILT-FM | 100.3 MHz | Audacy |
| KLOL | 101.1 MHz | Audacy |
| KRBE | 104.1 MHz | Cumulus Media |