Woman's House Burned Down And Her Sister Died In An Accident: Local News Station Gives Her An.... Wait For It.... UMBRELLA!
(The tweet has been deleted but here's a screenshot, which, lest we forget, live forever)
HALIFAX CO., Va. (WSET) -- A family is faced with a double tragedy after a house fire and fatal crash happened in one night.
ABC13's Chief Meteorologist George Flickinger went to deliver something special to the family on Ash Avenue on Sunday afternoon.
"Somebody is about to get an ABC13 Umbrella whose been going through a tough time recently so, we're gonna go meet Mary," said Flickinger.
"I was in my living room and I smelled something burning," she said. "It wasn't too long before the fire department got here."
As if losing everything you own isn't bad enough, Mary learned her sister died in a crash just 20 minutes up the road the same night. Virginia State Police said 69-year-old Carrie Williams was driving on Route 360 west, about half a mile east of Bethel Road, around 7:48 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 24 when she was hit by the driver of a pickup truck.
Mary's daughter, Kathy Long, reached out to George Flickinger saying that her mother lost this beloved possession of hers amongst many others. The family asked WSET for a new umbrella, and if George Flickinger could bring it.
"We have (a new) umbrella and I've never actually signed one of these before, but you have your own ABC13 umbrella, to you, bringing you sunshine on a rainy day," said Flickinger.
Can I be honest here for a second? If my house burned to the ground, I lost my sister in a car accident, and my grandkids almost died, I'm not sure an umbrella signed by the local weatherman would be enough.
Sure. It obviously goes without saying that being a weatherman in Halifax, Virginia is a big fucking deal. Everywhere you go, people are shouting, "WEATHERMAN!" and you smile knowing that only you can warn them about rain and whathaveyou. That being said, you gotta know your limits as a weatherman. For instance, you gotta know that putting your Johnny Hancock on an umbrella doesn't ease the pain for a woman going through a lifetime of pain in just a few hours. Sad, but true.
Now, I know that the local weatherman feels much responsibility to heal a community when they are downtrodden. But, sometimes you need the sports anchor. Some jobs are just too big for the weatherman. You need sports. Sports heals all. Well, maybe not all but it heals a hell of a lot more than a fucking umbrella.
I don't mean to overreact but that's the worst signed umbrella that I've ever seen. That sun? Booo. Just boo. That shit looks like a fucking toddler drew it. Disgusting. Talk about tone-deaf. Read the room. No one going through all that tragedy gives a shit about rain or your raggedy-ass thin umbrella. Ole TJ Maxx ass umbrella. Ole Found This Because Someone Else Left It Behind At Church Ass Umbrella. Ole This Is My Spare You Can Take It If You Want Dont Worry About Returning It Umbrella. Just Toss It Out When You're Done Ass Umbrella. Disgusting.
PS. Also, let the lady retake the picture. Jesus Christ. It's a digital age. There's no reason to publish this picture. The lady looks like she just went through a tragedy and then had to smell the worst fart of all time. Enough is enough. This lady deserves way more than an umbrella.