Weather Bulletins Interrupt Favorite Shows But Can Save Lives

"We interrupt this program to bring you a special news bulletin!"

You hear announcements like this from time to time as you watch television.

After the announcement is made, the announcer voice returns to say, "We now return to your regular program, already in progress."

Viewers don't like for their favorite programs to be interrupted.

We broke into "The Young and the Restless" and other CBS soaps several times Wednesday and Thursday (12/10-11) because dangerous weather was passing through the Upstate.

Co-workers tell me a number of people called News Channel 7, upset that we interrupted the soap operas. Apparently we broke into some rather interesting scenes.

Even today, a friend stopped me to talk about it. He said we should've interrupted commercials, not the TV show.

I happened to be watching the Y & R with my wife Thursday when the weather bulletins took place.

Like any viewer, I'd rather not miss any of the program.

But weather emergencies require immediate action.

If we interrupt your TV show, it's for a very good reason. It's to alert you of a dangerous weather situation.

The danger might affect the heart of our viewing area or one of the far corners.

Chief Meteorologist Christy Henderson is in charge of our weather team. She tells me we'll interrupt programming only when there is a tornado warning or a thunderstorm with large hail. The decision falls with our meteorologist on duty. We also crawl weather information across the top of your TV screen.

Our special reports contain information that can save lives. We show you the severity of storms, the communities affected, and the emergency action you need to take to be safe.

It's information we believe you need immediately. It can't wait until a commercial break.

This week's weather emergencies involved tornado warnings for the lower region of our viewing area. In these situations, every second's warning we give can be vital to saving lives.

I'm very proud of our weather team, and I've told that to Christy. I think Dan Bickford did an outstanding job explaining the tornado warnings with great accuracy, calm and professionalism.

We appreciate our loyal viewers, and we're sorry to interrupt popular shows.

We tell you everyday that we're "on your side." Alerting you immediately to weather emergencies is part of our service promise to you... trust us, we'll take care of you and your family.

We're glad no one was hurt, and there was hardly any damage, other than missing a little of a soap opera.