A fire which broke out at the Voice of Maldives (VoM) building in Henveiru district where the radio station’s transmitters are kept, has caused a nationwide disruption to the service. The interruption to VoM’s AM frequency [1449 kHz] was caused early on Friday morning.
The Director General of VoM, Badhuru Naseer, said that according to the Police the fire had broken out in the Control Room where an air conditioner had short-circuited due to water leakage. “None of the equipment there was damaged in the incident,” he said. “But because the power had been cut off from the whole place, the AM service is not broadcasting now.”
Naseer further said that they had only found out about the fire from the Police, even though they monitored the Control Room via CCTV from VoM’s main building in Maafannu district. “We heard about it from the Police stationed at the Henveiru Police Station, before the staff at our station could notify us,” Naseer said.
The signal from the station is received in Malé, nearby islands, Haa Dhaalu atoll Kulhudhuffushi, Addu and Fuvahmulah. Naseer said that due to the interruption the AM service, they were broadcasting their programmes via their FM channel. “The FM channel only covers around two thirds of the country,” he said. “It’s possible that anyone on the high seas would not be able to get the signal at all.”
He said that they would most likely be able to resume the AM signal within two or three days.
(Source: HaveeruOnline)
