Hurricane Florence At The Door

• Hurricane Florence is already wreaking havoc on the North Carolina coast ahead of its expected landfall early Friday. Parts of New Bern, NC are already experiencing rising floodwaters as the Neuse River is being pushed backwards by the hurricane-force winds and driving rain. Forecasters are predicting anywhere from 20 to 40 inches of rain is expected to fall in the region over the next 48 hours.

As expected, area radio stations have all hands on deck, broadcasting emergency information around the clock. The Charlotte-based Ace & TJ Show has created a new 501(c)(3) charity specifically designed for catastrophic events like this — the sole purpose of the Ace & TJ Radio Family Charity is to be there immediately for members of their audience who have been devastated after disasters like Hurricane Florence. Ace & TJ’s primary listening audience is based throughout the areas most likely to be hit hardest by Florence, including affiliates WERO (Bob 93.3)/Greenville-New Bern-Jacksonville, NC, WNOK/Columbia, SC and their flagship,WHQC (Channel 96.1)/Charlotte. If you’d like to help, please visit AceTJ.com/Florence — 100% of all funds raised will be used for immediate relief and support.

• Our friends at Studio Center are offering free audio and video production to any organization, municipality, educational institution or company in the Southeast that needs to get a message out related to Hurricane Florence preparation and/or aftermath. Studio Center CEO William “Woody” Prettymancommented, “Hurricane Florence has the potential to strike a devastating blow to the Southeast in the coming days. All of us at Studio Center are very concerned and want to help. We are available 24-7 when you need us.” Contact Studio Center toll-free at 1-866-515-2111 or visit studiocenter.com and reference Hurricane Florence.

• Curtis Media Group Country WQDR/Raleigh is dealing with the storm-related cancellation of this weekend’s Zac Brown Band show in a very positive way — In coordination with the actual Zac Brown, WQDR has acquired the next best thing — a recording of the band’s last Raleigh show from Oct. 6, 2017, and they’re going to air it Saturday night at 7pm.

“We were all disappointed the show had to be canceled, but obviously, the safety of everyone in North Carolina comes first,” said WQDR PD Mike Biddle. “Our focus right now is providing our listeners with the most current information regarding Florence and playing our part to ensure everyone’s safety. On the other hand, sometimes you need a break from the chaos, and if we can help provide a positive distraction for a couple of hours… then that helps too. We’re super-appreciative that Zac and his team didn’t hesitate when we brought up the idea.  Special thanks to Tom Starr for helping to facilitate things!”