WFRV back on air after long weather-related outage [UPDATE 4]

Talk about rotten luck.  First WFRV's digital transmitter goes down a few weeks ago.  Now it seems their analog transmitter has gone dark.

According to WFRV's own website, as well as the Green Bay Press-Gazette this morning, Channel 5's analog signal went off the air Wednesday evening and is still out as of Thursday morning.  Technicians are due to arrive today to diagnose the problem.  No time is given on when antenna viewers with analog TVs will be able to see WFRV restored. 

Since they are fed directly from WFRV, Time Warner Cable customers are still seeing the channel today.  DirecTV and Dish Network customers may also be affected by the outage, however DirecTV carries WFRV's programming via its digital/HD feed as well.

[UPDATE 1 1/31 11:00 AM: WFRV now says "it is believed the problem is with our transmission line going up the tower. Crews are expected to remove several sections this afternoon to inspect for damage."  They also have stated that Time Warner Cable is working on getting a WFRV feed to its Marinette customers.]

[UPDATE 2 1/31 13:00 PM: WFRV now says Comcast and Charter systems are still carrying analog signal.  Dish Network and DirecTV expect to restore theirs later this afternoon.  Those unable to view Channel 5 tonight but have Internet access can watch newscasts live at 5, 6 and 10 on WFRV.COM.]

[UPDATE 3 1/31 5:30 PM: Crews were apparently unable to finish the job Thursday evening and will resume Friday morning.  Dish Network and DirecTV have restored their signals.  WFRV officials believe the extreme varied temperatures lately cracked a seal and burned out the transmission line up the tower.  Sounds like a doosy of a problem to fix, for sure!]

[UPDATE 4 2/4: WFRV's transmitter nightmare ended Friday afternoon.  Click here to read the outcome of the story.  It's kind of a nice read.]