RUMFORD – A power surge was the suspected cause of a malfunction that knocked radio station WOXO off the air Monday afternoon.

Dick Gleason, owner of the Gleason Radio Group, said he will move WOXO programming over to an AM station until a transmitter can be repaired on Black Mountain.

Gleason said power went out and then off again throughout the day as rain and high winds battered the area. At one point, power flickered back on but the radio equipment on Black Mountain was no longer working.

“It zapped my main and temporary transmitters,” Gleason said. “It’s going to be difficult getting up onto the mountain to work on them.”

Early Monday night, Gleason was in the process of moving the WOXO FM 100.7 signal over to AM 780, which is normally used for religious programming. He said the AM station will broadcast WOXO programming at least until the middle of the week.