Weather reporting took front and center this week and without dull moments thanks to Hurricane Ian.
Some people don’t take the weather warnings seriously enough until veteran meteorologist Jim Cantore visits their area. Then they know it’s about to get real. And real is just what happened when the reporter was struck by a flying tree branch live on air.
While broadcasting live on Wednesday, The Weather Channel reporter proved to viewers that things were serious as he stood in 110 mph winds in Punta Gorda. “Yeah, this is extreme,” he said while standing in the middle of the street. Moments later, he was seen being pushed by the extreme winds and falling to the ground after being struck by the flying tree branch.
Not much can keep this guy down. After he gets back up he said, “Alright, you know what, I think I’m just going to come in here a second,” and then he grabs a street sign to brace himself. After reassuring his team that he’s fine, he said it was difficult to “stand up” because of the wind gusts. “I’m just, I’m going to let you guys look at the pictures, OK? And I’m going to stand behind this wall a little bit,” he said after making it back. He was then heard adding, “That was definitely our strongest gust. That one took my wind.”
Social Media Users Had Some Things To Say About Cantore’s Broadcast
Other viewers also took to Twitter to say what was on their minds as many were concerned for the weatherman’s safety. One person tweeted, “Hurricane doesn’t start until we see Jim Cantore holding a street sign for dear life.” Another wrote, “Jim Cantore literally hit by a flying tree branch during a live report. Please get this man off the street.”
“It Is What You Think It Is”
Another TV news reporter had people scratching their heads after seeing her broadcast in Naples, Florida. Viewers noticed something odd about her microphone and began asking questions. NBC’s Kyla Galer said in a clip shared online, “A lot of people are asking what is on my microphone. It is what you think it is – it’s a condom!” She added, “It helps protect the gear. We can’t get these mics wet. There’s a lot of wind, there’s a lot of rain, so we got to do what we got to do, and that is put a condom on the microphone.”