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Trailblazing broadcast meteorologist Gary England dies at 85

Gary England in 2018.
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Gary England in 2018.

Iconic Oklahoma meteorologist Gary England died Tuesday, Jun. 10, at the age of 85, according to multiple news outlets.

England was born in Seiling in 1939 and lived there until he joined the U.S. Navy at the age of 17. He attended the University of Oklahoma, and in 1972 began working at the television station that would become News 9.

The station implemented its own Doppler radar, which allowed England to supplement information from the National Weather Service with his own weather tracking and analysis.

In a 2013 interview with the Oklahoma Oral History Research Program, England said he was “not afraid to step out and issue warnings” before the National Weather Service.

“They didn’t like it, and now I can see why they didn’t like it,“ he said. “But… I’m gonna warn them. I’m not gonna call you and say, ‘Is that okay?’”

England is credited with developing and implementing several weather tools that are now widely used, including First Warning — a map in the corner of the TV broadcast showing which counties are under storm watches and warnings — and Storm Tracker, which shows severe weather timing for different areas.

He retired from News 9 in 2014, after more than four decades as a broadcast meteorologist. He continued consulting with the station’s parent company and served as the University of Oklahoma’s meteorologist-in-residence.

David Payne, England’s successor as News 9’s lead meteorologist, posted on social media that all Oklahomans “owe him a debt of gratitude.”

“He was one of a kind and the impact he had on our state, meteorology and severe weather prediction and tracking will be felt for years and years to come,” Payne said.

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Graycen Wheeler is a reporter covering water issues at KOSU as a corps member with Report for America.
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