Partly Cloudy
WBZ-TV weather forecaster Todd Gutner was on the air delivering a report about torrential rains and lightning when something went terribly wrong. Just as he said, "This is a dangerous--" the studio went black and the sound was lost.
Then the radar map came back on, leaving Gutner silhouetted against it. Finally, sound returned and Gutner, staying cool and collected, explained what happened.
"We just took a potent lightning strike," he said, "probably right to the rooftop or to our transmitter."
Assignment editor Amanda Howes was in the station's newsroom when it happened.
"I could hear claps of thunder and see lightning outside," she told me. "All of a sudden, the lights flickered and then they went out."
She wasn't surprised that Gutner kept his cool.
"He's one of the best we have here in this market," she said. "He did an amazing job."
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Comments
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14 Comments
Way to deliver the weather.....LIKE A BOSS
July 19 2012 at 12:10 PM Report abuse Permalink rate up rate down ReplyYep,Great job Todd!!!
July 19 2012 at 9:44 AM Report abuse Permalink +1 rate up rate down ReplyProfessionalism isn't just a perfect delivery under perfect circumstances. It's keeping your head when things go wrong. Things went horribly wrong for this man but he focused and did his job well. Hats off to this professional.
July 19 2012 at 9:32 AM Report abuse Permalink +1 rate up rate down ReplyProfessionalism isn't always the perfect delivery when everything is going smoothly -- it's getting through as smoothly as possible when something goes wrong. Big problem handled very well. Kudos to this professional.
July 19 2012 at 9:29 AM Report abuse Permalink +1 rate up rate down ReplyWay to go! This guy can do his job under any circumstance!
July 19 2012 at 9:15 AM Report abuse Permalink +1 rate up rate down ReplyF#CK IT, WE'LL DO IT LIVE!!! Great composure he had... Way to stick it Todd!
July 19 2012 at 5:43 AM Report abuse Permalink +1 rate up rate down ReplyA professional communications person and can not pronounce the word "probably" instead he says probly. What a farce.
July 19 2012 at 12:52 AM Report abuse Permalink -6 rate up rate down ReplyOoops...like most "pros" would say: "Probly pitchers of peepoh hea wit Pesent Obama" Sad isn't it. But, give the guy credit for staying cool and on point.
July 19 2012 at 3:24 AM Report abuse Permalink -4 rate up rate down ReplyOh get over yourself, nitpicker extraordinaire. People from different regions of the country have different patterns of speech. Isn't it far more important that he maintained composure and kept giving people necessary information. I think you were really stretching to find criticism here and ignored the fact that he was still professional throughout the video.
July 19 2012 at 7:44 AM Report abuse Permalink +6 rate up rate down ReplyWe watch Todd every night and saw this all happen, he truly is a great weather man.
July 19 2012 at 12:33 AM Report abuse Permalink +4 rate up rate down ReplyNat Redfearn
Todd did an amazing job of keeping his composure and it was fun to watch his shadow again the radar. He's a keeper.
July 18 2012 at 11:24 PM Report abuse Permalink +4 rate up rate down Replynicely done Todd!
July 18 2012 at 9:50 PM Report abuse Permalink +2 rate up rate down Reply