Hurricane Michael's Coverage in Cedar Key


Covering the third largest hurricane in the history of the United States was intense. Fortunately enough, I was assigned a safe beat of Cedar Key Island, a part of Levy County. WUFT sent me out for some pre-reporting and official updates from the Levy County Emergency Operation Center. 

I, however, didn't settle for less and, after dropping off my other TV partners who didn't feel comfortable covering the hurricane live, decided to go back out to Levy County and, this time, Cedar Key. Unfortunately, I and some other reporters were stopped at the intersection of State Road 24 and County Road 347, 2 miles away from Cedar Key.


We kept pushing the Cedar Key police chief for permission to drive in, but a bridge was damaged by flooding and inspection had to be completed. At this point, I already started to interact with some local residents who were also waiting for re-entry permission. This gave me a general sense of their awful experience during 2016 Hurricane Hermine but also their preparation and community spirit.

I was blissful to finally see a few residents driving out of Cedar Key to give us updates. I met this interesting character who reassured the media not just his family but also the community was safe and fairly dry.

Character development as I went over the recording again. I couldn't film the gentleman because he was camera-shy and in a rush to offload stuff for his wife.
At 6:30, an hour after storm surge started receding, we were finally granted access to the city. I immediately captured flood zones and road closures.

I ran into this intersection where the neighborhood was street dead -- with most residents supposedly evacuated to somewhere else -- and took my chance to walk through the water while doing a Facebook Live segment.

I later got a call from the Levy County Public Information Officer for updates on damages and power outages, unfortunately including some threats to myself as I ventured through the flood zones...

As I rushed to complete my report, I received more updates from sources and strived for the latest news from the town.

After a boisterous Wednesday, the product is finally out and well-received. The station is sending more reporters out for follow-up coverage, but we already owned an exclusive one. Still praying for those more severely affected area like the Panhandle and more colleagues who are still reporting out there.

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