John Patrick (meteorologist)
John Patrick (born April 16, 1974) is the Chief Meteorologist at WZVN-TV in Fort Myers, Florida. John delivers the forecast weekday evenings on ABC7 News at 6pm, 7pm & 11pm. Prior to officially being named Chief Meteorologist on August 5, 2011, John was the meteorologist on ABC7 Morning News and ABC7 News at 9am from April 4, 2005 through April 6, 2011, when John moved to the evening newscasts on a trial basis.
"JP," as he is commonly known on TV, was part of the team of eight meteorologists that provided around-the-clock coverage of landfalling Hurricane Wilma in October 2005 that was simulcast on WZVN and WBBH. This coverage won the Waterman Broadcasting Team a First Place Florida Associated Press Award. In 2007 and 2014, John won a Second Place Florida Associated Press Award for Best Weathercast in a Medium Sized Television Market. In Florida, the Medium Sized TV Markets include Jacksonville, West Palm Beach, Pensacola, And Fort Myers. Then, in 2008, John won a First Place Florida Associated Press Award for Best Weathercast. John worked alongside his WBBH brethren again on a simulcast during the landfall of Tropical Storm Fay in August 2008. John was nominated for an Emmy Award in 2008 for Best Weathercast and in 2009 in the On-Air Talent/Weather Anchor category. Again in 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2015 John won the First Place Associated Press Award for Best Weathercast.
Under John's leadership, the StormWarn7 weather forecast on WZVN-TV is certified for 2015 as "Southwest Florida's Most Accurate Weather Forecast" by WeatheRate, an Independent Research Company based in Phoenix, Arizona. This marks the second year in a row that WZVN is certified as the Fort Myers / Naples Television Market's most accurate forecast. Competitor WINK-TV also claims on-air to be Southwest Florida's Most Accurate, but a list of WeatheRate Certified Television Stations quickly proves this claim false.
Before joining WZVN & WBBH, John was the Morning Meteorologist at KNWA-TV in Fayetteville / Fort Smith, Arkansas from January 2003 to March 2005. In December 2004, John was voted Best TV Meteorologist in Northwest Arkansas by the readers of CitiScapes Magazine, beating out all three Chief Meteorologists in the market for the honor.
John also worked for WJAC-TV in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, where he did weather during the Saturday and Sunday 6PM and 11PM newscasts.
Prior to WJAC, John spent over three years at WRNN-TV in Kingston, New York between May 1998 and August 2001. John was on the Prime Time newscasts weekday evenings. John anchored with Rolland Smith and Kevin Connors on Valley News Live and RNN Rundown. John is probably best known for some of his weather live shots ranging from playing basketball against Sports Director Kevin Connors at Dave & Busters in the Palisades Center Mall to delivering weather while driving a convertible BMW Z-3 on the New York State Thruway to benefit breast cancer research to writing the Christmas Eve forecast to The Night Before Christmas while sitting dressed in a Santa hat next to the Christmas tree at Palisades Center. In 2000, John was nominated for an Emmy Award for Best Weathercast in the New York Region.
John also had over 10 years of broadcasting experience in radio before moving to television. John worked at several radio stations in Western and Central Pennsylvania, including WSSZ, WHJB, WLSW, WQTW, WCNS, WLCY, WJAC-AM, WKYE, WUZI, WVRT, and WWPA.
Education & Certifications
- John studied Communications at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh,PA but graduated with his Broadcast Meteorology degree from Mississippi State University in Starkville, MS.
- John is among the American Meteorological Society's elite Certified Broadcast Meteorologists.
- John has also earned the Seal of Approval from the National Weather Association.
Trivia
- While working at WJAC Sunday evenings, he could also be heard as a deejay on WKYE from 7PM to midnight. His Sunday evening radio show was voice-tracked, or pre-recorded, so he could do the 11PM weather live on WJAC.