MOLINE, Ill. — Talk about a crazy day at work!
Two of our News 8 team members climbed all the way up to the top of the BridgePointe Tower (formerly known as the Kone Tower) to perform camera maintenance on Tuesday afternoon.
Engineer Mike Carroll and Director Bill Dobbelare made the journey up, 180 feet into the air. The pair estimate they climbed roughly 14 stories up. Assisting from a nearby IT room was fellow News 8 crew member Seve Anderson.
The two spent about 45 minutes adjusting and repairing WQAD's traffic and weather camera on the top of the tower before safely making their downward descent.
They said it was a pleasant day for the adjustments and the two - thankfully - steered clear of any wasp or hornets nests while up in the air.
However, they did say the most difficult part of the day was the journey up and down the tower, as the elevator happened to be out. It took nearly half an hour to scale up the Donkey-Kong-style platforms and ladders!
But future repairs should be a little easier, as the team also adjusted some of the equipment, allowing most upcoming maintenance to be tended to on the second floor of the tower.
Throughout the repair process, N.E.D. (the News 8 Drone) captured it all on video. The end result is a stunning 360 view of Moline and the river while our crew diligently worked to get our broadcast camera back to full status.