Chris initially came to Spectrum News in April 2011 as a fill-in meteorologist before becoming full-time in May of 2014. Chris gained his interest and respect for weather while growing up in northern Illinois and Minnesota.

After receiving a bachelor's degree in meteorology from Northern Illinois University, he worked at WORK in Rochester, New York, and WCIV in Charleston, South Carolina, before moving to the Triangle in 1986 to work for WTPF TV and radio.

Chris was part of a team at WPTF-AM that stayed on the air all night on Sept. 22, 1989 as Hurricane Hugo made landfall near Charleston. That broadcast earned WPTF-AM awards from the South Carolina Broadcasters Association and the National Association of Broadcasters. 

Here are five other things you might not know about Chris:

  1. I have my EMT certification, and at one point, I volunteered with Cary Rescue.
  2. I married my high school sweetheart. She asked me out on the first two dates and in spite of me being a little slow, she married me.
  3. I'm a woodworker, mostly wood rings with inlay and turning bowls.
  4. I have a background in air pollution meteorology. As part of one job, I helped set up an ambient air monitoring station in Shenandoah National Park that was part of a permit for a power generating plant in Virginia.
  5. I've been a vegetarian for 30 years. I just lost my taste for meat, and I raised my two daughters as vegetarians.

Email: Chris.Thompson1@charter.com

Twitter: @Chris_WX

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