Northwest Arkansas Weather by Meteorologist Rick Katzfey
About Rick Katzfey
Rick at KNWA-TV
Rick Katzfey has been watching the weather both professionally and non-professionally for over 40 years. Rick is the former Chief Meteorologist for KNWA-TV, NBC affiliate in Fayetteville, Arkansas. He has gained great knowledge forecasting weather for Northwest Arkansas.
Rick
became interested in weather when he was only five years old. "We
didn't have the Weather Channel like kids do today. I remember when I
was very young, my brother Larry and I use to go outside where we lived
in Kansas to watch the big storms come through. We would wait as long
we could, or until lightning struck close, then we would get scared and
run into the house. Inside we would see my brother Jerry hiding under
the kitchen table."
Image:
Rick in 5th Grade
Rick was
forecasting weather for his parents and others when he was only 12
years old. "The television weather guys would say one thing but I
remember telling my mom that they would be wrong and a storm would move
through the next day." When he was 14 Rick began his public service
work by calling in rainfall amounts to the local radio station
KLWN-am. From age 14 to age 21 Rick would keep a daily almanac of
local conditions for the local community of Hesper in Eastern Kansas.
"I was really into it... I would keep track of all the highs and lows
and rainfall amounts."
Rick at White House with President Clinton, 1988
With over 13 years of broadcast television knowledge and skills, and working hard every day to improve his craft, Rick earned television's highest honor in 1999 by winning the prestigious Emmy AwardŽ for Best Weathercast while in Knoxville, Tennessee. He was nominated again in 2001. Rick was also recognized as one of the top 100 meteorologists in the US and selected to travel to the White House to speak to President Clinton and Vice President Gore on environmental issues and global warming. "It was such and honor to see the worn-out marble in the hallways of the White House and to realize that Winston Churchill and Harry Truman and many other great men and women walked the same steps as I was at that time!"
Rick has been recognized as the most accurate forecaster in every city he has lived including being named most accurate as part of a science experiment for a local school. He was also recognized as being the most accurate forecaster by the Nebraska Highway Patrol. "It is nice to hear from the Highway Patrol while in Omaha, Nebraska that before they would head out they would "see what Katzfey says"".
Rick is also a storm chaser and has video taped numerous severe storms and tornadoes. He has been within a mile of an approaching tornado learning a great deal of the mechanics of a severe thunderstorm.
