NY Anchor Returning After Health Scare

Veteran WCBS (New York) Meteorologist Lonnie Quinn took a temporary break from his on-air duties after suffering a concussion and experiencing a health scare right before a broadcast. Quinn revealed the news on CBS’s Friday night show, explaining that he would be stepping away for a few weeks following the head injury.

“I took a good – I took a wallop on my head and we went to the hospital,” Quinn said, noting that a CAT scan showed no serious issues. However, things took a troubling turn before a live broadcast when he suddenly lost vision in his left eye.

“It was right before the 11 o’clock news. I started to walk out here to the set and all of a sudden I couldn’t see out of my left eye,” Quinn explained. The episode lasted around fifteen minutes but disappeared just as quickly as it started—yet he still went through with the broadcast.

Despite no one realizing his condition at the time, anchor Kristine Johnson praised Quinn as a “consummate professional.” Following the incident, he was sent to the hospital and received another CAT scan, which again showed no abnormalities. Consulting a neurologist, he decided to take some time off to recover.

Quinn serves as WCBS’s chief meteorologist for the 5, 6, and 11 p.m. newscasts on weekdays. “I know this wasn’t an easy decision, but it is what’s best, and everything is gonna be right here, just as you left it when you return,” Johnson assured him.