Former Waterloo TV Legend and Boy Meteorologist Dead at 76

If you've lived in Eastern Iowa long enough, you might remember a young weatherman on KWWL named Jym Ganahl.

After a little over a decade at the station, he set out for Ohio, where he spent years as a meteorologist.

Earlier this week, it was revealed that this titan in the broadcast industry died at the age of 76.

Jym Ganahl Dead at 76

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His family announced the news about the death of Ganahl on Tuesday, February 11th.

The seasoned weatherman passed away on February 3rd of natural causes, but his loved ones did not want to make any sort of public statement until after the private funeral service.

He is survived by his two daughters and seven grandchildren, according to reports.

Jym Ganahl: KWWL Boy Weatherman

Ganahl started his broadcasting career in Eastern Iowa when he was just around seventeen years old. That's right! He was forecasting the weather before he even completed college!

Originally from Cedar Rapids, Ganahl rose to national fame as a weatherman for KWWL. At the young age of 17, Ganahl gave his very first weather forecast on the Waterloo news station in 1966.

At the time, he was regarded as the youngest broadcast meteorologist in the country. After about 12 years, the beloved boy broadcaster moved on to Columbus, Ohio where he forecasted the weather for more than 50 years, according to an earlier report.

Ganahl Makes the Move to Ohio

The University of Northern Iowa alum went on to NBC4 in Columbus, Ohio following his time in Waterloo.

Ganahl was on the air from the 1980s until 2016, according to a report from the NBC4 Columbus station website.

His final on-air forecast was on September 1st, 2016, but he stayed on staff until July 0f 2017.

In 2021, he was actually in the process of being verified for a Guinness World Record. 

Due to his long career in the industry, he was up for the record of longest-serving television weatherman.

"We're proud of all our alums and it's exciting to see the success Jym has had in his record-breaking career," said Geography Department head Mark Welford.

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