Naturally, the other major networks also had their weather crews in action. NBC News stationed Tom Llamas in Tallahassee with additional correspondents assigned to other cities. NewsNation correspondents Brooke Shafer and Mills Hayes were also in Tallahassee as the storm approached.
The Fox Weather team spread out across the state, with Ian Oliver and Michael Estime reporting in from St. Petersburg, Robert Ray in Cross City, and Brandy Campbell in Tampa Bay. Oliver says that Helene changed conditions in his beachside location “very quickly,” with storm surge swallowing up 50 years of beach.
“We had a plan, but the surge did come in a little faster and earlier than expected,” he says about how he and his crew stayed safe. “We made sure to keep ourselves in a safe place, but had we left much later we would have had to find a higher spot on St. Petersburg Beach to shelter in place for the night.”
Oliver also notes that being a former Tampa Bay resident made his coverage “deeply personal.”
“We’ve talked about the vulnerability of this area to storm surge, but watching a record surge play out in real time was surreal,” he add. “My thoughts are with everyone assessing damage and starting the clean up and recovery process today.”
Meanwhile, 160 miles north of St. Petersburg and 20 miles from the Gulf, Ray and his team came up with inventive solutions to keep their equipment operational amidst heavy winds and rain.
“We positioned our camera and gear deep into an SUV and placed the vehicle so that the winds would be to our side so the gear could stay dry and we could keep a steady transmission,” he explains.
