Spectrum Bay News 9 meteorologist helps Tampa Bay residents weather life’s storms

While many of us are still restocking our hurricane supply boxes as the height of storm season approaches, meteorologist Juli Marquez has extra time on her hands. She started refilling milk jugs and individual plastic bottles with water and stacking them in her freezer right after New Year’s. She also added things like batteries and peanut butter to her grocery lists months ago. “I just buy a little bit each week,” said the Spectrum Bay News 9 morning meteorologist. “When the season starts, I don’t have as much stress.”

Marquez, 50, a native of Chicago, moved to Tampa in 2002 after working at TV station KMTV-TV in Omaha, Nebraska. Living in Tornado Alley, she became a formidable force in preparing viewers for deadly impacts and helping them stay safe during storms. She has been nominated twice for Emmy Awards for her coverage of tornadoes in the Tampa Bay area. She uses those same skills to guide viewers through hurricane season, which began June 1 and ends Nov. 30.

With her own family living in an evacuation zone in Hillsborough County, Marquez doesn’t take any chances. This year, researchers from Colorado State University have predicted an above-average season of 23 named storms with 11 that have potential to become hurricanes, five of which could reach major strength.

“That doesn’t mean something is going to happen,” Marquez allowed. “But you don’t have to have a direct hit from a hurricane to be impacted.”

A graduate of Loyola University Chicago with a degree in communications, Marquez earned her meteorology certification from Mississippi State University and was one of the first women to earn the AMS Certified Broadcast Meteorologist seal, an important distinction between weathercasters and those who are knowledgeable about meteorology.

Marquez was always interested in the weather, inspired by the first woman she ever saw forecasting on television, Roberta Gonzales on WMAQ-TV in Chicago. She recalled being impressed with her knowledge of weather and how she stood out among her male colleagues as a professional. Channeling her memories of Gonzales, Marquez has been advising viewers to get their hurricane preparations underway for months. She urges homeowners to review their insurance policies to know exactly what is covered and to invest in portable chargers.

Marquez can’t say if storms are becoming more frequent or more severe because the technology available these days is much more advanced than it used to be. The weather studio in Spectrum Bay News 9′s Carillon headquarters was completely revamped and updated with new storm forecasting tools last fall in preparation for the 2024 hurricane season.

“It’s not one thing you have to look at, it’s the whole picture,” she said. “I think we just know a lot more than we did. We’re able to see more and we’re better at detecting what’s happening, although the intensity of the storms is still hard to predict.”

Marquez is among a team of meteorologists who have been together for many hurricane seasons. She’s currently on the air weekdays from 5 to 9 a.m., arriving at the weather center at 2:30 a.m. each morning. In addition to airing weather updates every 10 minutes, once the tropics begin to heat up, Spectrum Bay News 9 airs live storm updates with its Klystron 9 Interactive Radar system.

Marquez can’t forget 2004, when four named hurricanes impacted the Tampa Bay area in six weeks, all causing major damage. She remembers the ominous ride to work before Hurricane Charley, with maximum winds reaching 150 miles per hour, ripped through the Tampa Bay area.

“It was dark, and it was a ghost town. I remember looking around and thinking, ‘I don’t know how this is all going to look when it’s over,’” she said. “That’s what I think every year.”

And that’s the message she gives to residents who are new to the area or those who may be hesitant to evacuate.

“Because I live here, I understand exactly what they are going through,” she said. “So does everyone on our team.”