KIRO Seattle
Local News Bulletins
December
7, 1941, 9:56 pm EST
Just
a few minutes before 7:00 local (10:00 p.m. EST)
KIRO discusses the radio blackout that will occur
at 7:00, and the total light blackout that will
occur along the entire West Coast, from the Mexican
to the Canadian borders, at 11:00 p.m. local (2:00
a.m. EST).
Text:
Jack: In the first place, there will be no
radio broadcasting tonight after seven o'clock.
Except, perhaps, for one of the Seattle stations,
which will probably be KIRO. Leave your dial tuned
to KIRO and you'll get the information that is necessary.
There will be no programs broadcast but any information
necessary for the civilian populace will be broadcast
over KIRO, probably. There will be a complete blackout
tonight at eleven o'clock. The blackout is not only
for the city of Seattle, it includes every...every
light between the California border, or rather the
Mexican border and the Canadian border. That is
in the states of Oregon, Washington, and California.
Every farm house, every light of any kind in that
area must be out by eleven o'clock. To test your
blackout, you will have plenty of time between the
hours of seven and eleven--between now and eleven
o'clock--to make arrangements to get heavy black
paper to seal your windows, or heavy drapes or something,
and, uh, by going outside with your lights on you
can check before the hour is set, so see that you
are completely blacked out. If you are unable to
find materials and so forth, to make your, uh, windows
completely sealed so that no light will leak out,
you must have your lights off. However, do not pull
main switches. As we told you, ordinary window shades
are not sufficient to black out your, uh, lights.
Do not pull the main switches, however, just use
the switches on the, uh--in the rooms and on the
lamps. No lights are to be used on automobiles and
no lights whatever are to be shown anywhere on the
Pacific coast in the states of Oregon, Washington,
and California until thirty minutes after daylight--from
eleven o'clock tonight until thirty minutes after
daylight tomorrow morning. Employers should arrange,
if possible, that employees do not have to leave
residences until after daylight. And of course,
in all probability all buses, streetcars, and public
transportation vehicles within the city will be
off after eleven o'clock tonight. There will be
no bus service between eleven o'clock tonight and
thirty minutes after daylight tomorrow morning.
It's advised that all persons remain indoors during
the blackout, except those who have legitimate business
and who have concerns in the air raid precautions,
and so forth, who have legitimate business outside
the blackout. Morrie did you have something to say?"
Morrie: Just to add to what you said Jack
is this: please do not use the telephone more necessary
because you do block the lines of communication,
we must keep them clean, do not call your radio
stations or other sources of information regarding
the blackout. It has been ordered, therefore we
must take it in the best faith that we possibly
can. Remain calm, stay in your home, you can leave
your radio on to get all the information that you
need to from KIRO, but please do not use the telephone
more than necessary because you do block the lines
of communication, we must keep them clean, and here's
another bulletin handed me: "All traffic signal
blackout crew, of which there are approximately
300 members, report immediately to J. W. [?] traffic
engineer at 400 County-City building. And now by
authority of the Federal Communications Commission,
KIRO transmits on a frequency of 710 kilocycles
with its new power of 50,000 watts. It's almost
seven o'clock--five seconds to go--and we'll be
back ladies and gentlemen with information when
ordered by The United States Army Interceptor Command
here in Seattle.