Tony Petrarca refers to his first time on the air at WPRI after graduating from Lyndon State College as “the scariest three-and-half minutes in his life.” “March 17, 1987,” Tony recalled. “I just remember going a mile a minute. My mom called after the newscast [and said] ‘You were hyperventilating. Slow down.’ But it got better from there.”

Now, WPRI's chief meteorologist is celebrating 30 years at the Providence, Rhode Island station - a feat not often seen in the news broadcasting industry. Tony is a native Rhode Islander, and grew up watching WPRI 12, and has lived there his entire life.