Resilience Is Key After Super Typhoon

Although the impact of Super Typhoon Mawar could have been far worse, all five of KTWR’s curtain antennas were damaged – two severely – knocking gospel broadcasts off the air. The photos on this page show some of what our team members saw as they assessed the damage: several feed lines and insulators broken, an antenna and screen draped over guy wires, and a variety of other destruction. [Images by TWR]

In the aftermath of Super Typhoon Mawar, the strongest storm to hit Guam in two decades, staff members’ dogged efforts to get KTWR back on air may soon bear fruit.

Mawar crashed into the Western Pacific island May 24 with sustained winds of 140 mph, causing widespread damage and preventing TWR’s shortwave station from broadcasting gospel programs to China, North Korea, Indonesia and other parts of Asia. No deaths were recorded, but the American Red Cross summed up the impact on the 170,000 residents this way:

“The powerful storm flooded homes, tore off roofs, downed power lines and damaged water wells. While temperatures hover in the high 80s, people are living without the ability to shower, wash clothes, clean their damaged homes or refrigerate food.”

Of course, TWR team members and their families have also faced those difficulties in addition to the inevitable delays in getting needed equipment and materials to repair the five damaged broadcast antennas. Ministry leaders have scrambled to arrange for personnel with the requisite skills and experience to be available on-site to assist with the potentially dangerous work on the towers that soar 300 feet into the tropical sky.

“Each day when we meet to review progress, our team members show wonderous resilience, and they are doing everything humanly possible to restore KTWR’s nightly broadcasts to audiences across Asia,” said Daryl Renshaw, TWR vice president for the Asia region. “Throughout this past week, the team sensed God’s presence, and we thank him for what he is doing to help us temporarily restore KTWR’s broadcasts through other service providers in Asia and Australia. We have also heard from listeners in China and other parts of Asia who are praying for God to restore nightly ministry programs.”

Making Strides

KTWR Station Director Grant Hodgins reported the exciting news Thursday, June 8, that efforts to patch up curtain antenna No. 2 are believed to be complete. That means Antenna 2 could return to the airwaves within the next couple of days, sending out Bible programming in languages such as Korean, Mongolian, Uyghur and multiple Chinese dialects.

“We are especially burdened to restore three-plus hours of daily broadcasts to North Korea, where listeners live at great risk because of their relationship with Jesus,” Renshaw said.

While the station has been off the air, staff in far-flung time zones have rushed to secure agreements with other media outlets to temporarily broadcasts a portion of TWR programming. The Guam team expects more of the antennas to be brought online in coming days and weeks as repairs continue.

There’s a crucial role for TWR supporters who want to be a part of this all-out recovery process. The top priority is prayer, and specific areas to focus on are listed below. Super Typhoon Mawar presented the ministry with an unforeseen major expense. Estimates from the field indicate that we must raise $338,000 to cover the costs beyond what insurance will pay to fix the extensive damage. If you are able to help with these costs, please let us know on this page.

Praying for Recovery

Renshaw appealed for TWR staff and supporters around the world to lift the Guam staff before the Lord as they strive to bounce back from this crisis, asking him to:

• Restore electricity and water service soon for all the residents. As of Thursday, June 8, a few of the team members said their water and electricity is back on.
• Make available a boom truck so KTWR riggers can begin performing elevated repair work.
• Provide additional qualified workers from afar to help the team perform the elevated repairs.
• Protect workers (first names Grant, Mike, Cody, Etson and Anthony) as they carry out repairs from the bosun’s chair hoisted 100 to 150 feet off the ground.
• Bring success to TWR staff working hard to secure airtime with other broadcasters while KTWR is off the air.
• Encourage listeners who count on TWR programs for spiritual nourishment in countries like North Korea, China, Mongolia, Indonesia, Myanmar and India as they eagerly await the return of broadcasts from Guam.