A small fire broke out on the tower on top of the Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel in Downtown Atlanta on Jan. 2, 2023. (Courtesy: Sterling Rowan)
ATLANTA - Less than a month after announcing its return, 99X appears to be back off the air due to a fire at its tower site.
Smoke could be seen billowing from tower on top of the Westin Peachtree Plaza Hotel, about 723 feet above the streets of Downtown Atlanta just after 1 p.m. Monday.
Atlanta firefighters say the blaze was contained to the tower on top of fourth-largest hotel in the Western Hemisphere. Investigators are trying to determine the cause.
The hotel was not evacuated and no injuries were reported.
In a post to its Facebook page, 99X wrote:
"Our transmitter caught fire today. THIS IS NOT A STUNT. An investigation is underway. Any ideas on the culprit?"
The post drew some comical comments speculating mostly on Atlanta radio personalities past and present.
The station’s signals on 100.5 and 98.9 were just picking up static as of early Monday evening, but was back up later in the evening. The station's online stream was unaffected.
Atlanta-based Cumulus Media announced early in December it was changing Rock 100.5 back to 99X, a brand used for the mostly 90s rock and alternative station from 1992 until 2008.
Inquiries into 99X and Cumulus have not been returned.