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The lessons on driving, hypothermia, layering, emergency kits and pet care became the norm. In 2006 we moved back to Michigan. Ahh, the normalcy of weekly snow storms. Except…it felt like the meteorologists and newscasters had taken bad acting classes from their friends in the south. A snow storm was no longer just a snow storm, it was an opportunity to scare the crap out of people.
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I understood that most Carolinans only saw snow once or twice a year. The city/state did not have the equipment to deal with snow and people were not all that used to driving in the snow. Besides, if you wait 24 hours, it will surely melt. Schools would be cancelled the night before a storm based on the possibility of snow. Newscasters practically begged people to stay off the roads and to watch out for the ever-present and dangerous “black ice.” We just couldn’t understand what the big deal was about. It’s snow – slow down, pump your breaks and don’t use your cruise control.
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Apparently people needed to be reminded to stock up on food and water… grown adults needed constant reminders about how to drive in the snow… how to dress for the cold. Weather wasn’t just reserved for meteorologists – it was the lead story. In the year 2000, my wife and I moved to North Carolina, and our running joke was the absolute fear that the meteorologists would put in people if the slightest hint of snow was forecasted. Those were some of my best memories growing up. The meteorologist would take the last 3 minutes of the local news to give his/her best guess about the impending weather. Adults would watch and go about their business. Children would turn on the radio each morning to pray that their school would be canceled so they could all go outside and have some real fun in the snow. In addition to firefighting, Don's public service includes Police, Fire, and EMS dispatching and national certification as a 911 call-taker/dispatcher.I grew up in Michigan where snow storms and blizzards came with the territory. He is a certified rescue technician & first responder. He was also a volunteer firefighter for 7 years in Pennsylvania. And the name has stuck ever since!ĭon's family comes first in his life.
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So whenever there was big weather in the forecast, "Big Weather" was on TV. Second, during big weather events from tornadoes to flood warnings, Don was always on TV. First, he's 6'5" and one of the taller meteorologists on TV. He began his weather career over 20 years ago as a lead forecaster for KBIM-TV in Roswell, New Mexico.Īs for his moniker, "Big Weather," Don was given that nickname by a colleague for two reasons. Prior to that, Don worked for WTAE-TV in Pittsburgh, and WTAJ-TV in Altoona, Pennsylvania. He holds the Certified Broadcast Meteorologist seal from the American Meteorological Society as well as a Seal of Approval from the National Weather Association.ĭon joined Eyewitness News from Chicago where he served as a meteorologist for WBBM-TV. Honored with two Associated Press Awards for Best Weathercast, Don Schwenneker is a meteorologist for ABC11 Eyewitness News in the morning.