KHOU-TV and Dr. Neil Frank Keep Viewers Informed During Hurricane Rita

KHOU-TV and Dr. Neil Frank Keep Viewers Informed During Hurricane Rita

HOUSTON, Sept. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- KHOU-TV Channel 11 delivered 60 hours of continuous commercial free coverage to viewers as Hurricane Rita moved into the Texas Gulf Coast. 11News storm coverage totaled more than 100 hours of live, local programming since Monday.

Dr. Neil Frank is one of the world's foremost hurricane experts, and the former Director of the National Hurricane Forecast Center. Dr. Frank provided dozens of updates in the days and hours leading up to the storm. The 74-year old Meteorologist stayed on the air for 18 hours straight to give Channel 11 viewers the best and most timely expert information and analysis available.

Channel 11's continuous coverage began Wednesday at 12 noon and continued through Sunday morning at 12a.m. In addition, 11News This Morning broadcast a special edition of its morning show on the aftermath of the storm Sunday from 5a.m. to 10a.m.

As Hurricane Rita moved closer to the Texas coast, 11News crews filed reports from all over the region including traffic reports and team coverage of the massive evacuation on highways and interstates to updates from city and county officials in Houston and Galveston where the eye was expected to make landfall.

"We went to extraordinary measures to provide news and information to viewers at the time they needed it most," says Keith Connors, KHOU-TV Executive News Director. "Our goal is to be a place where people can turn to day or night to get critical information to help them protect their families and their property. I can't say enough about the job our team did to provide a valuable service to our community during this critical time. From providing information about where to get necessary items including gasoline, plywood, ice and water to bringing critical coverage of accidents, fires and the latest word from government officials, we connected people to what mattered when it mattered most for them."

11News was the first local station to report on the bus fire from Dallas and the only local station to deliver that information in a live report. 11News reporter Mark Greenblatt was inside the lobby of the Elegante Hotel in Beaumont as Hurricane Rita literally blew through the hotel. 11News was the first station to report the deaths of five people from Liberty County who died in their cars while sitting in traffic. 11News provided the first aerial video tour documenting damage of the storm. The aerial video was broadcast around the world on CBS, CNN, MSNBC and the Fox News Channel. 11News was simulcast during the storm over local radio stations KHJZ-FM, KILT-FM, KILT-AM, KIKK-AM and KRBE-FM. 11News was seen all over the country and the world through streaming video on khou.com, cbsnews.com and yahoo! 11News will continue coverage of the aftermath of the storm during its regular broadcasts.

KHOU-TV is part of Belo Corp., one of the nation's largest media companies with a diversified group of market-leading television, newspaper, cable and interactive media assets. A Fortune 1000 company with 7,600 employees and $1.5 billion in annual revenues, Belo operates in some of America's most dynamic markets in Texas, the Northwest, the Southwest, Rhode Island, and the Mid-Atlantic. Belo owns 19 television stations, six of which are in the 15 largest U.S. broadcast markets. The Company also owns or operates seven cable news channels and manages one television station through a local marketing agreement. Belo's daily newspapers are The Dallas Morning News, The Providence Journal, The Press-Enterprise (Riverside, CA) and the Denton Record-Chronicle (Denton, TX). The Company also publishes specialty publications targeting young adults, affluent populations and the fast-growing Hispanic market, including Quick and al dia in Dallas/Fort Worth, and the d, El D and La Prensa in Riverside. Belo operates more than 30 Web sites associated with its operating companies. Additional information is available at www.belo.com or by contacting Carey Hendrickson, vice president/Investor Relations & Corporate Communications, at 214-977-6626.

Source: KHOU-TV Channel 11

CONTACT: Wendy Burkeen, APR, +1-713-521-4312 or Amy Heinlein, +1-713-284-8761, both for KHOU-TV Channel 11

Web site: http://www.khou.com/ http://www.belo.com/

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