WPYK

WPYK

Portsmouth, Ohio
Broadcast area	Portsmouth, Ohio-Ashland, Kentucky-Huntington, West Virginia
Frequency	104.1 MHz
Branding	K-Love
Programming
Format	Contemporary Christian
Network	K-Love
Ownership
Owner	Educational Media Foundation
Sister stations	WHKU
History
First air date	1948 (1948)
Former call signs	WPAY-FM (1948–2011) WNKE (2011–2017) WPAY-FM (2017–2018)
Call sign meaning	"WPAY" — "K-Love" (former callsign, current format)
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority	FCC
Facility ID	54813
Class	C0
ERP	100,000 watts
HAAT	450 meters (1,480 ft)
Transmitter coordinates	38°41′0.00″N 83°0′46.00″W / 38.6833333°N 83.0127778°W / 38.6833333; -83.0127778
Translator(s)	93.3 W227AX (Morehead)
Links
Public license information	Public file LMS
Webcast	Listen live
Website	www.klove.com

WPYK (104.1 FM) is a radio station licensed to Portsmouth, Ohio.^[2] The station became notable when it stayed on air during the floods in Portsmouth in 1937, giving up-to-the-minute news and announcements to those separated and weary from the floods. In the 1960s, the then-WPAY-FM started to play country music on its FM while its AM sister station was reassigned to have a news-talk format. The AM signed off the air on June 3, 2011, after 80 years. WPYK is currently a K-Love affiliate station broadcasting a contemporary Christian format and is owned by Educational Media Foundation.

WPYK has one of the most powerful radio antennas in Southern Ohio and had one of the tallest radio towers, standing over 200 meters high overlooking the Ohio River in Kentucky. Due to the station having an ERP of 100,000 watts, its signal can be heard as far away as Columbus, Ohio, Beckley, West Virginia, Lexington, Kentucky, and Cincinnati, Ohio. This tower collapsed from the weight of the ice during an ice storm on February 19, 2003, and put the station off the air for a couple of days. The fall of this tower not only put out WPAY radio, but all of Scioto county public safety communication services. All services were restored by nightfall, February 21, 2003. In 2006 a new tower just to the southwest of Portsmouth and the location of their old tower was built. It is 356 meters tall, or 450 meters above average terrain and features an ERI brand 12-bay directional antenna spaced at a half-wavelength.