Patrece Dayton (left) tears up as longtime colleague and weather man Kevin Orpurt holds her hand for their final broadcast. Both of them were let go in the Allen Media Group layoffs

Colleagues at an Indiana news station choked back tears during their final broadcast together amid changes that will see weather forecasters around the country laid off or reassigned.

Patrece Dayton, a news anchor at WTHI in Terre Haute, and Kevin Orpurt, the TV station’s chief meteorologist, had a box of tissues at the ready when they revealed to loyal viewers they were both losing their jobs.

‘Kevin and I have come into your homes for decades – nearly 37 years for me,’ Dayton said.

‘And more than 40 for me,’ Orpurt added.

‘For those of you who don’t know, our positions are being eliminated here at WTHI-TV,’ Dayton continued. ‘The television business in general is changing nationwide and budget cuts are happening everywhere.’

The station’s parent company, Allen Media Group, recently announced the sweeping cuts that will affect local meteorologists at its nearly two dozen stations nationwide.

Dayton kept her cool for the majority of the heartbreaking sendoff, but near the end, she grabbed Orpurt’s hand for comfort as she choked up.

‘For the final time, good night and sleep well,’ she said before the broadcast cut and the crew was seen migrating over to the duo to hug them.

Patrece Dayton (left) tears up as longtime colleague and weather man Kevin Orpurt holds her hand for their final broadcast. Both of them were let go in the Allen Media Group layoffs

Patrece Dayton (left) tears up as longtime colleague and weather man Kevin Orpurt holds her hand for their final broadcast. Both of them were let go in the Allen Media Group layoffs

The crew of WTHI is seen hugging Dayton and Orpurt after the show ended

The crew of WTHI is seen hugging Dayton and Orpurt after the show ended

Amber Kulick, a meteorologist at WAAY in Huntsville, Alabama, was affected by the widespread cuts as well.

‘By now most of you have probably seen the chatter about Allen Media letting local meteorologists go, well I am one that will be affected by this,’ she wrote on Facebook.

‘For now I am still at the station but I am looking for my next career opportunity,’ she added. 

At least three meteorologists affected by the staffing cuts or who are familiar with them said around 100 people are getting laid off due to the decision by Allen Media, a company owned by TV mogul Byron Allen.

A source familiar with the process offered CNN a more conservative number of at least 50 people getting the ax. 

Allen has an estimated net worth of $735 million and tried to buy the Denver Broncos in 2022, an NFL team worth roughly $3.75 billion at the time. He also made a failed $30 billion offer to snag Paramount Global last year. 

The Weather Channel was acquired by Allen Media in March 2018 for $300 million.

There will be a national ‘hub’ based in Atlanta led by Carl Parker, a veteran storm and climate specialist at The Weather Channel.

Instead of having locally produced segments, Parker will oversee a feed beamed to the local TV stations from Atlanta. The feed could be manned by some of the meteorologists who lost their positions, CNN reported. 

Christina Burkhart, a meteorologist who recently left WJRT in Flint, Michigan, explained in a Facebook post how this change will work.  

‘Weather forecasts will be sent from The Weather Channel in Atlanta. These will be pre-recorded by regional meteorologists recording hits for each Allen station. Live severe weather coverage will also come from them,’ Burkhart wrote.

Byron Allen, who owns Allen Media Group, has tried to buy the Denver Broncos and Paramount Global

Byron Allen, who owns Allen Media Group, has tried to buy the Denver Broncos and Paramount Global

Carl Parker, storm and climate specialist at The Weather Channel, will lead a new group of Atlanta-based meteorologists

Carl Parker, storm and climate specialist at The Weather Channel, will lead a new group of Atlanta-based meteorologists

Amber Kulick, a meteorologist at WAAY in Huntsville, Alabama, was affected by the staffing cuts and is in the market for a new job

Amber Kulick, a meteorologist at WAAY in Huntsville, Alabama, was affected by the staffing cuts and is in the market for a new job

Allen Media said the Atlanta-based operation will offer local stations new technologies, upgraded forecasting tools, additional graphic capabilities, and the ability to cover weather stories at all hours of the day and night.

The company also said weather coverage will remain a ‘top priority’ and shared its belief that the new format ‘will dramatically improve reporting capabilities, especially in high-stakes weather situations.’

This comes months after Bloomberg Law reported that Allen Media was in significant debt and had entered confidential talks with its creditors to hammer out a deal.

Spencer Denton, a meteorologist at Gray Media-owned WVLT in Knoxville, Tennessee, didn’t necessarily agree that this will be wise in the long term.

‘I don’t think this is a good move and I don’t see it being successful. It may save money in the short term, but takes away value and credibility in the long term,’ Denton wrote in a Facebook post. ‘I personally know some in this group that were let go. They are wonderful people, employees and meteorologists.’

He also noted that ‘WEATHER is the number one reason most people watch a local newscast.’

Weather was the most important news topic for 70 percent of Americans, according to a 2019 Pew Research poll, with crime (44 percent) and traffic (41 percent) coming in a distant second and third, respectively.

Local news stations in California were able to draw huge audiences when the Los Angeles wildfires broke out and in the days after.

On January 7, when the Palisades and Eaton fires both started, KABC-TV in Los Angeles drew 318,000 viewers for its 6pm newscast and just under 192,000 at 11pm — gains of 86 percent and 42 percent over the ABC affiliate’s recent averages, according to the Hollywood Reporter.  

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