Special Section
Meet WBAL TV’s Meteorologists
Each quarter, WBAL-TV 11 meteorologist Ava Marie offers readers a peek at the wonders of our community’s weather. Here, she introduces her weather team colleagues to the community..
By Ava Marie — December 2024
What inspired you to become a meteorologist?
Tom: A winter of many snowstorms when I was in middle school that caused us to miss many days of school and then make them up in late June. I wanted to understand those storms that interrupted my summer vacation.
Tony: I have always been interested in weather for some reason! Even as a little kid, I was the only one to check out weather books from the library.
Ava: I’ve always loved learning about science, and then teaching it to others.
Dalencia: During high school, I was inspired to become a meteorologist after watching a tornado outbreak on The Weather Channel. Seeing a female meteorologist provide crucial updates that helped people stay safe showed me how impactful this career can be.
Alena: In my last semester in journalism school, I was given the opportunity to forecast weather for our student broadcast. I’ve always wanted to be a journalist, and realized forecasting was another way to help people through storytelling, knowledge, graphic design, and personality.
Name a memorable weather event:
Tom: Nothing beats the back-to-back blizzards of February 5-10, 2010. We had 50″ of snow at my home in Baltimore County!
Tony: The Blizzard of 1978–79 in Chicago holds a big memory for me, and more recently the Baltimore recordsetting snowstorm in 2016. Awesome!
Ava: While in college in Kansas, there was a microburst (downburst of air from a thunderstorm) with winds up to 90 mph. We found a set of bleachers crumpled like tin foil and ceramic roof tiles stuck into tree trunks like axes.
Dalencia: Snowmageddon in Washington, D.C. in February 2010. As a young girl, the sheer amount of snow was absolutely magical. I vividly remember my dad building an igloo in the driveway making it feel like a winter wonderland.
Alena: The Linwood Tornado on May 28, 2019 while I was working in Kansas City. A mile-wide EF-4 tornado ripped through parts of eastern Kansas, before reforming into an EF-2 near the KC metro. My job that day was to direct our crews into position to get footage of the tornadoes, and we were one of only two stations to capture the tornado live on air.
What’s your favorite outdoor activity?
Tom: It’s a tie between fly fishing for trout and golf. Places where I can do both are my favorite!
Tony: I love playing golf and being at the beach or in the mountains.
Ava: Hiking and camping. I like the peace and quiet that comes with going off the grid. Dalencia: Anything at the beach! Assateague Island is my happy place.
Alena: Without a doubt, offshore fishing! I like the instant gratification with how quickly you’ll catch a fish seconds after you’ve dropped your line in the water. If you don’t feel a tug after about a minute, then it’s likely your bait was already taken and time to reload.
A place you’d love to visit?
Tom: Back to the Swiss Alps. My wife and I had the good fortune to travel there last year and the mountains around Zermatt and St. Moritz were stunning.
Tony: The northern latitudes like Alaska or Iceland to get a look at the northern lights.
Ava: Alaska on the summer solstice to experience 24 hours of daylight, where they play a famous midnight baseball game in Fairbanks.
Dalencia: Ottawa’s Rideau Canal to skate on the world’s largest naturally frozen ice rink. I love ice skating, and although I’m not a fan of the cold, I’d love to experience the beauty of winter in a Canadian winter wonderland. The canal’s ice needs to be 30 cm thick and requires several days of cold weather to be safe for skating, making it a unique winter experience I’d love to enjoy.
Alena: Iceland! I know we’ve been able to see the northern lights in parts of North America, even as far south as Florida, but there’s really no better place to go than Iceland, from what I’ve read. There’s also so much beautiful scenery from ice caves to the Blue Lagoon.