Frank, we are glad you and your family are ok. I am sorry about your loss. God Bless and take care, Grant, W5XB
The photo above was one of the photos I had taken. Here are some of the other photos I took last week the day after the tornado. Frank (W3LPL) lives about 13 miles east of me. So after I got off the phone with my insurance company.....I decided to go get a cup of coffee and check on Frank and this is what I found.
That is a shame for sure. That looks like the old military surplus towers Frank started with decades ago and that one appears to be the 10M tower. Not the strongest tower by far but likely would still be standing if the guy structure didnt fail. Ive known Frank since he was KN1LPL in HS and I was in the USN stationed aboard ship at Newport RI. We were both members of the Providence Radio Association, W1OP, and I still stay in touch with several of the older members. Carl
It would be helpful as a safety tip to get confirmation and more info on the suggested failure mode. This report implies a non-conductive guy line deteriorated and broke during the storm. There are two main types of non-conductive materials in common use; both are strong and can be durable but have weakness with ultraviolet radiation or mechanical damage. Kevlar fiber (Phillystran) is enclosed in a UV resistnat plastic sheath, but can be cut with a knife (or sharp shrapnel), and, extruded fiberglass rod (Polygon) which supposedly is UV stabilized, but can suffer from vibration and "blooming" (rot) over time, a reason why such fiberglass is not favored for outdoor electrical enclosures as much now. Which one of these, if either, was the culprit? How old was it? Was there any sign of it being hit with debris or other surface damage prior to this event that could have seeded the situation? 73 de John - WØPV
