A month or two late...

Back in the last week of July, we had a near-tornado hit here. I was up in my shop working when it happened - the whole second floor was moving.

Then the tower that carries my Internet connection and the repeater for the neighborhood went down - BANG.

As soon as the storm abated enough to go out and look, sure enough, my 70' Rohn 25 tower was twisted over the roof, almost touching the ground in front. The repeater pilot lights were still lit.

The next day I took these:

The guy wires are still all attached.

The notch in the roof is my doing - I set the base of the tower 6" too far south.

The wide band company sent a crew out the next day to take the old tower down. Expensive scrap metal. Two sections are recoverable for my ham tower, I think.

The tower was guyed about halfway up. The north guy was loose before the storm - I had told the wide band company about it, but they never got someone out to fix it. I'm long past the point where I climb towers.

No damage to the roof, amazingly.

The new tower, with proper guy wires installed:

One section taller than before, and one dish less loading.

It took almost three weeks for the tower to get replaced. Internet withdrawal is tough - one reason I haven't posted a lot even once I got back on the air.