WBTV meteorologist Jason Myers wore a smile as he delivered Charlotte’s forecasts
READ MORE
WBTV Helicopter Crash
On Nov. 22, 2022, WBTV meteorologist Jason Myers and pilot Chip Tayag tragically lost their lives in a helicopter crash. Read the ongoing coverage from The Charlotte Observer below.
Expand All
When he walked into the newsroom, everyone’s mouths turned to smiles.
Meteorologist Jason Myers made eye contact with every person in the WBTV studio before prepping his forecast, coworkers recall. He checked in with them to form deeper connections than a work life — asking about their families, too.
“Nothing about Jason was anything but happy,” WBTV anchor Molly Grantham said during a broadcast Tuesday. “You never met anyone who was as positive and happy as him.”
Myers, 41, died in a helicopter crash Tuesday along Interstate 77 with Sky3 pilot Chip Tayag. He is survived by his wife, Jillian, and their four children. Myers’ and Tayag’s coworkers spent long, sad hours Tuesday remembering their colleague live on the air, sharing tears with their viewers and pouring out their hearts to the public about two men who made WBTV a better place.
The Charlotte community mourned a familiar, friendly face on their TV screens who never let people forget their umbrella and kept them safe during storms.
The smiling weatherman once twirled on an ice rink live on the air, bundled up to inform viewers about chilly temperatures.
“I’m gonna try and do a little trick for you guys,” Myers said before spinning in a circle.
He returned to face the camera with one arm stretched wide and the other holding a microphone to his trademark smile.
It wasn’t unusual for Myers to go above and beyond during newscasts.
“Look at him, trying to make sure that everybody watching understood the intricacies of a delicate and involved forecast by being fun, by being positive, by giving the story,” Grantham said during a segment on Tuesday night. “Writing in the pollen on the car or standing in front of the debris and making sure you guys understood it.”
Where Myers got his start
Meyers’ passion for weather can be traced back to a third-grade science project.
He took a weather class at Discovery Place in Charlotte and made a homemade weather station with the help of his mom, according to his WBTV biography page.
Myers grew to personify what a meteorologist should be, said Charlie Tuggle, senior associate dean for undergraduate studies at the University of North Carolina’s Hussman School of Journalism and Media. That means warning people about weather in a direct, accurate and personable way that can potentially save lives, Tuggle said.
“The saying always was that people watch local TV for the weather,” said Tuggle who worked in TV news for 16 years. “You can see that here in North Carolina when there are snow flurries. They’re on for 24 hours straight.”
Tuggle worked with Myers in the early 2000s when Myers was just a lanky student in the North Carolina State University meteorology program. Myers went to UNC’s campus every Wednesday to give the weather report for a joint student newscast called Carolina Week.
Everyone in the newscast built a strong bond, Tuggle said. Even two decades later, a student from the time called Tuggle Tuesday heartbroken about Myers’ death.
“He was part of the team. Even though he took the good-natured ribbing about being from State and State not being our rival,” Tuggle said. “I knew right away he was gonna be good.”
Myers broadcast career took him across the U.S.
Myers’ talent and passion for weather initially brought the North Carolina native to work as a weather observer at the Raleigh-Durham International Airport in the early 2000s after he graduated from N.C. State.
Myers’ first broadcast meteorology gig was in Albilene, Texas in 2004 at KRBC-TV.
He went from Texas to WRIC-TV in Richmond, Virginia.
“Jason was a wonderful, devoted family man,” said WRIC meteorologist John Bernier, who worked with Myers during his time in Richmond. “He was one of the nicest people you would ever meet. He loved covering weather and always wanted to learn more so he could be a better meteorologist. Our hearts go out to his family, friends and coworkers.”
Before coming to Charlotte, Myers was chief meteorologist for ABC 36 in Lexington, Kentucky from 2013 to 2019.
“Jason was a meteorologist for our WTVQ — ABC 36 News team for six years and we enjoyed every minute of our time together,” ABC 36 General Manager Chris Aldridge said. “At this time of Thanksgiving, please wrap your prayers and thoughts around the Myers family as we remember a man gone too soon.”
A close bond with his WBTV family
In just a few years back in Charlotte, he made an impact on his WBTV coworkers.
Producer Brandy Beard said she remembers Myers checking in often after a miscarriage.
“To say the newsroom is heartbroken is an understatement,” Beard wrote in a tweet. “Most of all, we’re heartbroken for their families.”
Reporter David Whisenant’s eyes filled with tears as he talked on air about Myers’ faith at the scene of the crash Tuesday night.
“I spoke with Jason many times about his faith,” Whisenant said. “Jason and I are brothers in Christ. That’s where we find our hope.”
Whisenant then quoted scripture from 2 Corinthians 5:8: ”To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.”
This story was originally published November 23, 2022 at 1:40 PM with the headline "WBTV meteorologist Jason Myers wore a smile as he delivered Charlotte’s forecasts."
