( WJET/WFXP ) — February 5 is National Weatherperson’s Day honoring the researchers and forecasters who gather and collect all the data they need to share with viewers the weather every day.
In Erie, JET 24/FOX 66 meteorologists Tom DiVecchio and Tom Atkins spoke about their lives as meteorologists and shared insights from their careers.
What made you want to be a meteorologist?
Like many meteorologists, the fire that started their weather passion happened at a young age.
DiVecchio : “The direction of how I got here changed but the desire to want to be a meteorologist came at a really young age. I can remember a specific day back when I was 7 or 8 years old, we got the paper, and my dad would read the sports and he would read it first. I wanted to read the comics and that’s where the comics were, but he gave me the ‘A’ section, which was the boring stuff about national news that a 7-year-old wouldn’t care about. I opened it up and on the inside cover there was an article that said ‘Spring tornadoes hit the middle states’. I started reading it and I was amazed at what these tornadoes can do.”