KOOP Damaged by Fire (Again)

Has any radio station in history been more beleaguered by fire than KOOP?

For the third time in two years, Austin’s eclectically-programmed community station has been knocked off the air by a fire. The station’s Airport Blvd. studios and offices sustained extensive damage in a Sunday morning blaze. An investigation into the cause is under way. KOOP executive director Kim McCarson expects the station to be broadcasting again in about two weeks.

KOOP’s previous home, a dilapidated building at the corner of 5th and San Jacinto that also housed Sweatbox Studios, was razed after a massive fire in February 2006, just weeks after incurring $600,000 in damages from a smaller fire.