Dontae Jones

Growing up in Akron, I had a chance to experience everything from copious amounts of lake effect snow to searing summers with severe thunderstorms. In fact, it was those thunderstorms that sparked my interest in weather. I’ve always been a news junkie, even at an early age I wanted to be a News Anchor. I decided I would blend my love for weather and anchoring to become a Broadcast Meteorologist. I graduated from The Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Atmospheric Sciences. Soon after graduating, I became a Weekend Meteorologist for The Ohio News Network, based in Columbus. After spending some time with ONN, I accepted a position as the Weekday Morning and Noon Meteorologist for WNCT-TV9 in Greenville, North Carolina (near the Outer Banks). While there, I had the chance to track hurricanes and other tropical systems. I covered the historic flooding events that were produced by Hurricane Matthew and Hurricane Florence. I also forecasted ice storms, including one that crippled the city of Raleigh-Durham. After spending the last 5 and a half years in eastern North Carolina, covering hurricanes, tropical systems and ice storms, I felt the call to come back home to the Buckeye State and the Birthplace of Aviation. While at WHIO, I’ve forecasted, reported, and surveyed tornado damage across the Miami Valley. In addition, I covered the historic outbreak of tornadoes of Memorial Day 2019. My apartment complex was damaged in the outbreak. There have been several large snow events that I have forecasted here in the Miami Valley that have given me the opportunity to forecast for snow again since I spent so much time forecasting and tracking tropical events in the Carolinas. The Miami Valley has an extensive array of weather phenomenon and it takes a skilled forecaster and Meteorologist to be able to give viewers the accuracy they need to stay safe in such changing weather conditions. One thing I enjoy as much as forecasting and delivering the weather information to you all, is meeting people and spending time in the community in which we all live. That's the wonderful thing about being a local Meteorologist--we live and work in the same community--we experience the same weather--good and bad--and can share our experiences. If you see me out and about, say hello!