KATC's local programming is off the air after a lightning strike hit its building on Eraste Landry Road.

The station's signal froze at 5:50 a.m., the exact time we at Townsquare Media saw and heard a lightning bolt strike nearby. The lights on the Townsquare building flickered when that bolt struck. About a minute after the lightning strike, KATC switched off the frozen frame to ABC network programming.

In a push notification sent at 6:15 a.m., KATC confirmed that the lightning strike knocked their station off the air.

Ian Auzenne/KPEL
Ian Auzenne/KPEL
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No word on when KATC will be able to resume local programming. Meteorologist Daniel Phillips tweeted that the station will do weather updates on its Facebook page until the station gets back on air. He also gave some insight into why the station is off the air.

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