In late December 1995 Diablo-watchers noticed something different about the mountain’s silhouette, one of the towers was missing. The heavy storms, with winds recorded up to 134 mph, blew down Diablo Communications Inc.’s tower. Jerry Lindquist, president of the Richmond-based company said that the structure served pager companies, radio and television stations, towing and ambulance companies from Stockton to Sacramento and many other points in Northern California (see coverage chart). Clients were forced to route communications through other towers in the Bay Area or do without service. One of MDIA’s board members, who lives in Martinez, bemoaned the loss of K-FOG, her favorite radio station.

The company was negotiating with State Park management to replace this tower with a more-modern structure, this project has now gone into overdrive. The new tower, to be the same size as the old (265 ft plus 20 ft of antennas), will be installed over the next few months at a cost of about $500,000. Services are currently being maintained using 10 temporary utility poles, some of which are in the Lower Summit parking lot.