Merkley, Wyden announce federal funding to upgrade Warm Springs radio station KWSO’s emergency alert system
WASHINGTON (KTVZ) - Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, D-Ore., have announced that KWSO-FM, a non-commercial community radio station owned and operated by the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs, is receiving up to $158,749 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
The federal grant will be used to upgrade the radio station’s broadcast transmission infrastructure as part of the Next Generation Warning System (NGWS) program, which is critical to keeping communities safe during emergencies like wildfires.
“It is critical for Oregonians to have access to the latest information when disasters strike, especially for folks in Tribal and rural communities who have fewer media resources to turn to for lifesaving updates,” Merkley said. “This FEMA investment for the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs to upgrade KWSO radio’s emergency alert equipment will further help protect the Tribal community and surrounding region from wildfires and other disasters for years to come.”
“I know from my visits to KWSO and interviews with the radio station how this mainstay provides essential news and information for the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs and surrounding communities,” Wyden said. “I’m glad KWSO has earned these federal resources that will modernize and strengthen emergency response for the Tribes and nearby communities when wildfires, severe storms and more strike Central Oregon.”
FEMA’s NGWS grant program is administered by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) to help public media stations across the country—especially stations serving rural, Tribal, and underserved communities—replace and upgrade public broadcasting infrastructure that supports emergency alerting and public media’s local role in public safety communications. So far, the CPB has awarded 21 grants nationwide in the first round of funding, including the award for the Warm Springs.
KWSO radio broadcasts seven days a week, 24 hours a day, providing local news, cultural programming, and music. The station reaches an estimated 50,000 people in all of Jefferson County and into Wasco, Crook, and Deschutes counties, with a main focus on serving the Warm Springs community. The Warm Springs will use the federal funding to install and upgrade KWSO radio’s emergency alert equipment and towers, as well as establish an alternate transmitter site in case of emergency.
“KWSO radio has been on the air since 1986, serving the Warm Springs Reservation, as well as rural neighbors in Jefferson, Wasco, Crook & Deschutes counties,” said Sue Matters, KWSO Station Manager. “In Central Oregon, we are prone to wildfires and so understand how emergency readiness is critical. There also is a proactive effort to be prepared for a Cascadia Subduction Zone event. The NGWS grant will allow KWSO to create redundancy in their air chain to assure the ability to provide information dissemination during an emergency event/disaster, providing real time updates in service to impacted communities.”
