There’s a good chance you wouldn’t want to spend too much time in any place frequented by Jim Cantore, a meteorologist for The Weather Channel. In the three decades since the meteorologist first gained fame on television, his or her hometown has become inextricably linked with the most devastating blizzards, tornadoes, and hurricanes.

What’s become of Cantore? According to his Twitter, he says Mother Nature will decide. The famous weatherman was last seen in Punta Gorda, Florida, as the west coast of the state prepared for Hurricane Ian’s onslaught. Cantore predicted on Twitter on Wednesday that this hurricane would be among the strongest ever recorded in southwest Florida.

Instagram calls this certified broadcast meteorologist and a fellow of the American Meteorological Society “the original Weather Channel StormTracker,” and he’s been the network’s most known “weather geek” for more than 35 years. The network is situated in Atlanta.

According to the Weather Hall of Fame, he has provided live coverage of more than a hundred tropical systems. Nora Zimmett, president of The Weather Group’s news and original programs, stated that Hurricane Ian was Cantore’s 109th storm.

“Jim never sought out to be some type of weather superstar,” Zimmett said to USA TODAY. He’s just a science nerd who made knowing a lot about the weather and being enthusiastic about it cool. When a severe weather forecaster shows up in a town, residents know that a tornado, hurricane, or “mother nature’s latest temper tantrum” is on the way.

How and why Cantore has come to represent dangerous weather is discussed.

Who is Jim Cantore?

According to his profile on The Weather Channel, Cantore was born in Waterbury, Connecticut, and grew up in Vermont. After finishing up at what was then Lyndon State College but is now Northern Vermont University, he went to work for The Weather Channel in 1986.

The meteorologist is the face of the network’s daily weather coverage. If he isn’t filming a documentary about the weather, you may find him in places that are likely to be impacted hard by the impending storm.

Cantore, a certified member of the American Meteorological Society, has earned a number of honors for his reporting, including an Emmy, for his use of Immersive Mixed Reality technology from The Weather Channel to highlight the hazards of tornadoes. His work earned him a spot in the Weather Hall of Fame at the National Weather Museum and Science Center in 2018.

Why do people care where Cantore is during severe weather?

Cantore’s appearance before and during severe weather events has become a warning for locals, and his presence has become a running jest in the realm of meteorology. A resident of Perdido Key, Florida, scrawled “Go away, Jim Cantore” on boards covering their windows in anticipation of Hurricane Nate in 2017.

Hurricane Zeta devastated Biloxi, Mississippi in 2020, and a Weather Channel camera showed a soaked Jim Cantore walking through calf-high floods in a flooded parking garage to show viewers the damage as it happened.

Zimmett added that he was in Biloxi in 2005 when Hurricane Katrina hit.

Read More: Where is Vitaly Zdorovetskiy Now? What About His Youtube Career?

She lamented that “most individuals had been diverted to New Orleans,” meaning that nobody was around to provide assistance. “His squad assisted in the evacuation of veterans from a local facility.”

How does Cantore stay safe?

Zimmett claims Cantore has never been wounded despite putting himself in potentially risky circumstances due to his fascination with extreme weather. Zimmett added, “We do not put anyone in harm’s way here at the Weather Channel, and if we feel we’ve positioned (reporters) too near to the heart of the storm, we will evacuate them if they don’t have sufficient shelter.”

The network team, including Cantore, frequently dons Kevlar jackets, goggles, and helmets when doing hazardous tasks. Zimmett has stated that they have daily meetings to discuss safety procedures. She also noted that the network prioritizes booking hotels that are less likely to be affected by storm surges.

Related: 

A look at Cantore’s past weather coverage

Cantore has covered some of the worst hurricanes to hit the United States, such as Hurricane Michael in Florida in 2018. During that storm, he was caught on camera by the Weather Channel stumbling around in the path of flying debris and high winds while holding onto his microphone.

In addition, he has reported on the aftermath of catastrophic tornadoes in Moore, Oklahoma, and Joplin, Missouri, as well as significant snowstorms and a large number of hurricanes, including Ida in 2021.

According to an interview with the Weather Channel, Cantore’s first live shot for the network came from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, during Hurricane Andrew in 1992.