Weather Channel Broadcasts From Wildwood Dog Beach

WILDWOOD – A four-member crew from The Weather Channel found themselves standing beneath a brilliantly sun-filled sky with a gentle breeze wafting across the calm cyan sea. For the team, who has covered everything from hurricanes and blizzards to wildfires and drought, coming to Wildwood was a day at the beach.
Throughout the course of the morning June 20, Weather Channel viewers throughout the nation were treated to a view of Wildwood’s wide free beach, a wade in the ocean and fun on the city’s newest attraction, its dog beach.
While cameras zoomed in on canines cavorting in the water with their owners, Commissioner Pete Byron, who advocated for the city’s dog beach, told Weather Channel correspondent Raegan Medgie that bringing the only year-round dog beach in Cape May County took almost a year.
Byron explained that the Weather Channel’s visit to the city was a month in the planning. The commissioner said the Weather Channel had learned of the city’s dog beach and wanted to be part of its opening ceremonies that were scheduled for June 14.
“We weren’t able to make that work,” he said, “because it would have to have been during the week and that wasn’t pet owner friendly because at this time of year, most of the people who come to Wildwood are here on the weekend.”
The Weather Channel, however, was adamant that it wanted to come to the dog beach. “They decided they still wanted to be a part of it because they felt it was something special,” Byron said.
Doing cut-ins during the network’s morning program “AMHQ with Same Champion,” Medgie conducted interviews with Byron, Mayor Ernie Troiano and local veterinarian David Hirsch. She also spoke with dog owners and took multiple opportunities to interact with the leashed pooches.
In the final segment of the show, Medgie joined the crowd and made her report while standing in the ocean. With a videographer and sound technician in tow, she rolled up her pants legs and made her way into the ocean for her first dip of summer.
Medgie is no stranger to the Wildwood beach. She said as a child she often came to the city.
“When I was a little girl we came down to Wildwood,” said the Bethlehem, Pa. native. “We would come down and hang out at the shore all weekend. You can say that I grew up at the shore all summer.”
Medgie said her work for the Weather Channel involves covering the news component of weather. To that end, she has traveled to Colorado to cover snow stories, California for wildfires, to Michigan to cover the ice-covered Lake Huron.
“I’ve been everywhere, she said, noting that her visit to Wildwood’s sunny beach was her “favorite assignment.”
“How terrific to have the Weather Channel here,” said Byron. “It’s one thing to be on local news, but this is national news. This is really going to put Wildwood on the map.”