Larry Erickson

According to Larry Erickson, chief engineer for KBJR, the antennas worked too well, and signals were sent into Canada, where a license to broadcast is needed.

"We're only sending signals a mile or two into Canada, but the Federal Communication Center said we have to get approval from Industry Canada to remain on the air.Right now our license is suspended, and we have to take care of this in the right way, or the next time we try to renew our license the FCC could say we're not acting in good faith," said Erickson.

Channel 8, who also broadcasts off of the tower, has already received their approval to continue broadcasting.Erickson said the FCC could fine his station and channel 3 each $2000 to $10,000 for the violation, but he hopes it won't come to that.

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"It just swamps the thing out," said Larry Erickson, KBJR's chief engineer.

The NBC affiliate is giving away signal filters to people experiencing problems.Available at Perpich TV and Music in Mountain Iron and at Sonny's Electronics in Cook, the filters reduce the strength of KRII's signal so it won't overpower other television stations.

The filters have to be installed between the antenna and the pre-amplifier, which could mean a cold trip to the roof for some viewers.

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Erickson said he has heard of about a dozen complaints.