LEX 18 meteorologist Bayne Froney takes new job with FOX Weather
After three years in Lexington, LEX 18 meteorologist Bayne Froney is moving on to a position in New York City.
Froney has taken a job as a meteorologist with FOX Weather.
Friday was Froney’s last day at WLEX, Lexington’s NBC affiliate. She said in a telephone interview Tuesday she’s already moved into her New York apartment with one of her sisters and is excited for her first day on the job with FOX.
“We’re right in the beginning of hurricane season,” she said. “I’m just excited to meet the team.”
Froney, who is originally from Michigan, earned a degree in broadcast journalism from Arizona State University and spent a year as a reporter for KERO-TV, an ABC affiliate in Bakersfield, Calif., where she said she filled in doing the weather on weekends and realized how much she enjoyed it.
She went on to work as a reporter and forecaster at KXXV, an ABC affiliate in Waco, Texas, and she completed a master’s in geoscience at Mississippi State University.
She said she went into journalism because she “loved storytelling,” but she said she came to realize “you can kind of tell a story with the weather.”
She said her background in reporting has proven helpful, allowing her “to connect with the community that’s being impacted” by intense events like the recent tornadoes in Kentucky, as she is “telling the story of the sky.”
Froney said she finds tracking severe weather interesting, and she appreciates the value of providing that information to people in the path of severe storms.
“We’re helping and spreading that message to people,” she said.
When the opportunity to work full-time as a meteorologist in Lexington presented itself, Froney jumped at it.
“I took the job without ever visiting Kentucky. It was the best decision I ever made,” she said.
Froney said she’ll miss her coworkers and the camaraderie they share at LEX 18.
“They really became my family,” she said. “I owe a lot to them.”
And, she said, “I’ve never met kinder people in my life than in Kentucky.”
But she’s also looking forward to the new position, which she said is a dream come true.
“I can’t wait to continue exploring my fascination with meteorology and work with some of the best in the industry,” Froney said in a news release announcing the change.
Sharri Berg, president of FOX Weather, said she’s excited about adding Froney to the service’s lineup of meteorologists.
“Her commitment to forecasting accuracy and passion for weather news will be a great addition to our best-in-class weather service,” she said in a news release.
FOX Weather is a free, ad-supported television service that is available online at foxweather.com, through the FOX Weather app and on internet-connected televisions through a number of providers.
While June 16 is her official start date, Froney said viewers should not expect to see her on-air right away, as her first weeks on the job will be spent in training and related activities.
“Stay tuned,” she said.
