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Most of us have experienced the anxiety of listening to a report on severe weather that is heading right for our area. But we likely never consider the fact that the meteorologists we listen to are in the same boat.
Doug Kammerer, a meteorologist in the Washington, D.C. area gave viewers an all too personal reminder of the dangers of severe weather when he stopped his live broadcast to call his children and alert them that the tornado he was reporting on was headed directly for their house.
The moment occurred last Thursday evening during a bout of extremely strong thunderstorms in the Washington area. See the moment below.
#Working4You When a tornado warning sounded last night, Storm Team4 Chief Meteorologist @dougkammerer was working to keep you informed and safe \u2014 just like his own family. https://nbc4dc.com/Sks6FvT\u00a0pic.twitter.com/xZZrDOWCC6— NBC4 Washington (@NBC4 Washington) 1648812308
The tornado warning was issued in Washington's Maryland suburbs, in the area around the cities of Bethesda and Chevy Chase, the latter of which is where Kammerer lives--as he realized while reporting on it. Examining the weather map, Kammerer said:
"So this [warning] is going to go right over... my house. So very close to my house which is in the Chevy Chase area and the Bethesda area."
Kammerer then began dialing his phone and his son picked up while he was mid-sentence. Kammerer then told his son:
"I want you to get down in the basement. We have a tornado warning so I want to make sure you and Callie get downstairs as soon as you can... Do it now."
The moment drove home the danger tornado warnings present.
According to the National Weather Service, whereas a tornado watch indicates the possibility of a tornado, a tornado warning means an actual tornado has been spotted either on the ground or on radar and there is "imminent danger" to life and property.
Though Kammerer appeared composed on-air, he admitted on Twitter that the moment had him deeply alarmed.
Yes, had to warn my family! Kids were home alone and I knew they were not watching me on TV! They are safe. Thank you! Scary moment for me though, I was freaking out inside a bit.https://twitter.com/LinaMizerek/status/1509713005969350662\u00a0\u2026— Doug Kammerer (@Doug Kammerer) 1648778730
But while watching him on TV, you'd have never known it, and many on Twitter applauded Kammerer for keeping his cool amid a harrowing situation.
.@dougkammerer just put on an absolute master class with @nbcwashington during a tornado warned storm on how to do live broadcasting. 45 minutes straight with no hyperbole, useful information, with relatively limited incoming data, used every available resource. Great work.— SilverSpringJoe (@SilverSpringJoe) 1648775343
A good weatherman\u2026 a good father showing us all how to keep calm and do both his jobs at the same time.— Donald D'Avanzo (@Donald D'Avanzo) 1648848544
Just randomly saw this and wanted to say you did a great job multitasking there.— UglyCasanova (@UglyCasanova) 1648864120
Doug, you just gained a new follower from halfway across the states. Complete professionalism + great parenting on display here. Washington is lucky to have you.— Elijah Smith \ud83e\udd41\ud83d\udcfa\ud83c\udfa5 (@Elijah Smith \ud83e\udd41\ud83d\udcfa\ud83c\udfa5) 1648906577
Excellent, excellent multi tasking. Work is very important but keeping the family safe is job #1 of a working Dad.— Tim Brockett (@Tim Brockett) 1648834437
Meteorologist, Kamerer, protecting his kids in tornado\u2019s path by interrupting warning segment to call them. Proof: take tornado warnings seriously.\n\n\u201cI gotta warn my kids, because I know what my kids are doing right now, they\u2019re probably online gaming. & they\u2019re not seeing this,\u201d— Suzie S (@Suzie S) 1648852838
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Such a solid dad move. I\u2019m impressed and inspired— drew nelson (@drew nelson) 1648910911
Didn't see this until now. Doug is the . Always loved his coverage.https://twitter.com/nbcwashington/status/1509854369621200908\u00a0\u2026— George Carmi (@George Carmi) 1648907168
Humans first. Then journalists. \n\nLove this.https://twitter.com/nbcwashington/status/1509854369621200908\u00a0\u2026— Evan Koslof (@Evan Koslof) 1648821290
Thankfully, Maryland escaped any tornado touchdowns on Thursday, but one did hit nearby Tysons Corner, Virginia. Seems like Kammerer definitely did the right thing by warning his kids.