By Conor Sharkey
PIRATE radio station, TCR, may have played its last request, following the latest swoop by media regulator Ofcom.
Officials raided the local station last Wednesday, seizing thousands of pounds worth of transmitting equipment.
Since Tyrone Community Radio first hit the airwaves 13 years ago, it has endured a running battle with the authorities, which accuse the station of ripping off performers and siphoning advertising away from legitimate stations.
The accusations have always been strenuously denied by station staff who claim they are providing a vital community service. Staff also maintain they have lobbied time and again for a licence, but to no avail.
Hundreds of people from across the North West tune in daily to listen to the predominantly Irish country music orientated station.
But speaking to the Strabane Chronicle on Tuesday, a station spokesperson said constant scrutiny from the authorities could bring the curtain down on TCR for good.
"We have looked for a licence for years but we always get the same response from Ofcom, that there isn't one allocated for the area. The last time we applied, we were told we wouldn't be considered until at least September next year.
"It has got to the stage now where we just can't afford to continue. When we were raided last week, they seized our equipment and it costs anywhere from £2,000 to £5,000 to replace. This must the fifteenth time we have been raided and it has been happening more frequently over the last two years, so it looks like things are coming to a sad end and I'll be sorry to see it," he said.
The spokesperson said the station provides comfort to many in local hospitals and nursing homes.
"It's hard to say how many listen to the station, but if we have a competition in the evenings, we would usually get around 80 callers in the space of about an hour or two.
"We believe we are providing a community service as any charity events or fundraisers happening in the North West, we advertise them for free and sometimes we contribute to them ourselves. On top of that, it gives people a way of comforting their friends or relatives who are in hospital or are unwell.
"There is no great profit in what we do and most of the money we make goes back into maintaining the station but we keep going because we feel there is a need for it.
"At this stage I would be prepared to sit down with Ofcom if I thought it would save TCR. It's getting very near the stage where we are going to have to fold and I think that will be a travesty for the DJ's, the staff and most of all, the listeners," he added.
Despite the plea however, Ofcom remain adamant that TCR will remain off the air until they gain legal status.
Yesterday, a spokesperson explained that several factors are considered prior to a licence being issued. The biggest of these is the amount of room available on the FM band. At this stage the dial is crammed with legitimate stations, however TCR being allocated a slot in the future is not an impossibility, they said.
And with regards to the view that the closure of TCR would be a loss to the community, the spokesperson said he hoped the public would understand that Ofcom's job was to ensure that station operators played by the rules.
"I can't confirm their claim that they have applied for a licence but the bottom line is that if someone is broadcasting illegally, we have to act because it can interfere with stations that are operating legitimately," he said.
