I thought the tech might have been testing, but now not so sure.
The transmitter appears to be randomly turning on with live programming.
The transmitter only stays on for a period of around 3 minutes each time & then off again for maybe 6 to 15 minutes or so, as observed over the past 24 hours or so.
Still on air for a couple of minutes then off air again.
2CHY Coffs Harbour was off air for over an hour around 11am-midday today (probably longer). RDS dropped out too.
Sounds like thereās too much reflected power overloading the TX. Thisād explain why it keeps cutting in out, as the TX overheats from the reflected power and then cools off once it shuts down for a while. Possibly a failing antenna or some other problem in the mast e.g. moisture in one of the coax joins etc.
We had problems like that with our two previous antennas. Turns out it was because ZCG antennas are garbage. Changed it out for a refurbished secondhand antenna made by a company that shut down about a decade ago (forget which one) and itās been flawless ever since.
I was thinking along the same lines. 
Would be a worry if the station sent the TX away for repair & no fault found & reconnected TX only to find original fault condition & left it like that.
But if it was a lightning strike, could be/have been multiple faults between antenna & TX that all need/ed to be investigated & resolved.
The stationās basically been off air for quite some weeks now.
I know of one community station that has no volunteer technician & I do wonder how they manage. Iāve no idea of Triple Hās funds for repair either or tech service accessibility. No updates on their Facebook page.
Just monitoring again (just now) & TX on for two minutes & off again for several minutes.
Canāt comprehend why they donāt just leave the TX powered off until fault resolved.
That said, some community stations are better resourced or managed that others.
UPDATE: Just looked at their website & they say theyāre back on air.
Oops! They were a bit presumptive.
Perhaps looking like a unresolved coax/antenna problem as youāve mentioned @radiolurker
Surely a reflected power or SWR meter should have been used or observed upon reconnecting the TX though.
It could just as easily be age-related wear and tear, especially if one of more parts of the antenna and/or coax run had worn out i.e. insulation around joins, corroded connectors etc.
Depending on where theyāre situated, it could either be CBF emergency grants or via a state-based community radio association such as SACBA in SA. But even if money isnāt an issue, thereās the issue of convenienceā¦ itās far more convenient to have a tech or two as part of the stationās volunteer cohort and/or access to techs who work exclusively with community radio than it is to find a tech on a commercial basis.
Even if you do have techs, sometimes it helps to bounce stuff off techs from other stations for a second opinion. It really helps if thereās an organisation like SACBA or SCMA that have techs that arenāt tied to a particular station, thus they get to see a wide range of different setups across their member stations.
Unfortunately, techs arenāt getting any younger and itās a bit challenging to encourage younger people into it. Not so much the IT and networking side, but itās the RF side that kids donāt seem all that enthusiastic about.
Iām surprised nobody has considered turning the power down until the reflected power reaches an acceptable level. A weaker signal thatās stable has to be better than a stronger one that keeps cutting in and out.
Hope News (Hope 103.2) has a reporter (Sally Anne Young) on scene at the CBD Hill blaze
Quite likely the community stations in question have no technical support - even if the did from an ex-IT or telco worker its quite unlikely they would have broadcasting skills like setting audio levels on a program chain and adjusting a compressor/limiter. A number of community stations have burned volunteers over the years too.
Eventually the ACMA will get onto them and issue a warning notice which if they ignore will have them taken off air. Same with transmitter off/on all the time - ACMA will ask for the licence back.
EMR spectrum is a public resource and nobody has an entitlement to it - if they cannot meet their licence conditions they need to turn off and return the licence.
I drove past the transmitter at Waitara for Triple H. It is on air at very low power. It starts to fade around Westfieldās Hornsby (lots of multipath). I think lots buildings now around doesnāt help the signal anyway given those apartments are higher than the transmitter itself. Although at full power it is normally good around Hornsby CBD (considering its an easy walk 10 min - 15 min walk to the transmitter). Basically you canāt get much around Normanhurst or Thornleigh (this tune into the car radio). It seems like though it is consistently on air now. Although I got no signal at home now so I canāt be sure.