Kevin O’Connor Kommentary April 10

KBTX Announces Changes To The Station’s Weather Team

KBTX anounces a major change in the people providing the station’s weather coverage. Chief meteorologist Shel Winkley has announced he is leaving to pursue a new opportunity. Taking over as only the third chief meteorologist in the nearly 70 year history of the station is Max Crawford, who has been at KBTX since 2008. Shel’s tenure at KBTX began as an intern in 2006. He joined the station fulltime in 2009 and was in his 11th year leading the weather team. News release from KBTX: Thursday, April 18, 2024, KBTX announced two major changes coming to the PinPoint Forecast Team. First, Chief Meteorologist Shel Winkley let viewers know he will be leaving the station on April 25 to pursue new opportunities. Winkley first joined the station as an intern in 2006 and became a full-time member of the meteorology team in 2009. He’s served as chief meteorologist since 2013. During his time at KBTX, Shel also taught broadcast meteorology at Texas A&M University, served as chair for American Meteorological Society’s Board of Broadcast Meteorology, and was routinely recognized as a leader in his field by peers and trade organizations. KBTX thanks Shel for nearly 15 years of dedicated service to the Brazos Valley and wishes him all the best in his future endeavors. “I cannot say thank you enough for allowing me to earn your trust to cover the storms, hurricanes, historic temperatures, impacts of a changing climate, and just the day-to-day weather of Central and Southeast Texas,” said Winkley. “But also thank you for the conversations, the questions, and most importantly the support and friendships you have gifted me over this decade and a half.” Concurrently, KBTX announced longtime morning meteorologist Max Crawford would now lead the station’s team of meteorologists. KBTX maintains the region’s only team of degreed meteorologists dedicated to the Brazos Valley, including a unique meteorology fellowship for students of Texas A&M University that’s helped launch Aggie into talent to television markets across the country. Max Crawford joined the KBTX weather team in 2008 after working at KWES-TV in Midland-Odessa, learning and working under legendary broadcaster Tom Tefertiller. Crawford got his degree in Meteorology and Atmospheric Sciences at Texas A&M University, where he was part of Winkley’s first broadcast meteorology class and worked as an intern at KBTX in 2013. Since 2015, Max has been a pillar of KBTX’s PinPoint Forecast Team and a regular face for viewers on Brazos Valley This Morning. Crawford is an active board member of the United Way of the Brazos Valley and remains actively involved at Texas A&M, where he was honored as a Fish Camp namesake in 2016. At KBTX, Crawford will be just the third person to hold the title Chief Meteorologist, and one of only around half a dozen people to formally lead the station’s weather department over its nearly 70-year history. He looks forward to continuing the station’s legacy of innovating and leading the market in weather coverage, and to leading a team of Aggie meteorologists dedicated to serving the Brazos Valley. For nearly 70 years, KBTX-TV has been the Brazos Valley’s only fully-staffed, full-power local television station. Broadcasting more than 40 hours of news each week over the air, KBTX is always available for free on channel 3.1, online at KBTX.com, and in the KBTX app on your phone or preferred streaming device.

City of College Station Update on WTAW

Councilwoman Elizabeth Cunha visits with WTAW’s Scott DeLucia about Amazon’s drone delivery operation, the Wellborn and George Bush interchange, e-bikes and other modes of transportation, the no-more-than-four unrelated ordinance, summer jobs, and more during her appearance on The Infomaniacs on Friday, April 19, 2024. Listen to “College Station Councilwoman Elizabeth Cunha on The Infomaniacs” on Spreaker.

Bryan Man Arrested For Filing A False Police Report On His Grandmother And A Brazos County Jail Inmate Is Arrested For Assaulting Another Inmate

A Bryan man arrested for filing a false police report on his grandmother runs away from officers after he is taken into custody. Bryan police arrest reports say 19 year old Darrius Smith was able to run out of the indoor parking area of the Brazos County jail before the doors closed. Smith was found, still in his handcuffs, hiding outside an apartment building across Sandy Point Road from the jail. Smith was initially arrested for causing an emergency response to his 84 year old grandmother’s house. While Smith accused her of pointing a rifle at him, officers believed that was not possible. One reason is that the grandmother uses a walker. Also, she was not able to get to the rifle because it was in a closet behind a full sized heater and a large laundry basket. And the rifle was covered in dust, which the officer took as a sign that the rifle had not been used in quite some time. Smith, who was also charged with escape following his initial arrest, remains jailed as of April 18th in lieu of bonds totaling $12,000 dollars. A Brazos County jail inmate is arrested for assaulting another inmate who participated in a prayer walk. The sheriff’s office arrest report says the inmate who took offense at the group event struck one of the participants twice in the head. The victim was checked out by the jail’s medical staff for two areas on her forehead that were red and had swelling. Charged with assault causing bodily injury was 33 year old Maria Prado of Bryan. The arrest report also said Prado told the investigating deputy that she stopped hitting the victim because the victim did not hit her back. Prado, who is in the Brazos County jail for the 18th time since March 2008, has been held since March 16th on three warrants from Val Verde County on charges of human smuggling and warrants from Brazos and Edwards counties on charges of possessing controlled substances. Bonds in all cases totals $63,000 dollars.