Meet Kent Ehrhardt - American meteorologist at WPTV and KMOV and weather forecaster

Kent Ehrhardt is a popular American meteorologist. He has been providing weather forecasts on KMOV Channel 4 for over 25 years now. He lives and works in his hometown of St. Louis, Missouri. He is regarded for his knowledge of weather systems and his forecast of extreme events like hurricanes. He is 66 years old.

Weather forecaster Kent Ehrhardt

Early Life

Ehrhardt was fascinated by weather from when he was a child. He says it was his dream to become a meteorologist when he was a third grader. In high school, he was hired for research on thunderstorms. Such has been his passion to understand weather.

He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Mass Communication from Southeast Missouri State University. He is also certified in Advanced Broadcast Meteorology from Mississippi State University. His mom Shirley Lynne was a well known nightclub singer in the 1950s and 60s.

Family

Ehrhardt divorced his wife in 2008, after 25 years of marriage. He has three children with her– Alec, April and Austin. His daughter April is married, and recently had a daughter, McKenzie.

He also parents a child, Kendall, he has from another romantic relationship (partner name is not disclosed). His fourth child was born when his first child was 20 years old. He has spoken openly about the challenges of being a late parent.

He is currently in a relationship with Katie Hayes, who is a Manager of Outreach at STAGES St. Louis. He lives with her and her two sons. Katie Hayes is not to be confused with American TV host and producer Katie Daryl, known for her gossip show, TMZ.

Career

Following his education, Ehrhardt served as Chief Meteorologist in West Palm Beach, Florida, for 13 years at WPTV, an affiliate of NBC. Following this, he moved back to his hometown of St. Louis in 1998, when he joined KMOV Channel 4 as Chief Meteorologist.

Besides TV, his forecasts have also been appearing in local newspapers and radio weather broadcasts. In 2010, he was made a co-host at Great Day St. Louis, a show he continues to feature in. Some of the important weather events he has reported include Hurricane Andrew, Gilbert, Gordon, Hugo and Erin.

Kent Ehrhardt with journalist Kelley Dunn in 1989

In 2012, when he was facing challenges in his personal life, he lost his position as a Chief in KMOV. He then started featuring in the morning shows, and became a household name and face for his forecasts daily in News 4 This Morning. He presented morning shows until July 2023. Following this, he has moved to an afternoon show, My St. Louis Live! On KMOV. When he featured in the morning forecasts, he led a tough life with his day starting at 2 am and ending by 7 pm.

In 2016, Ehrhardt had to be off-air for several weeks following a surgery for skin cancer on his eyelid. This was announced by the Channel on its Facebook page.

Besides this, Ehrhardt has a reputation of not taking leave that he is eligible for, in his channel. This was the reason for a lot of rumors when he did not appear on TV for two weeks early this year. He then made a video appearance on the show, Great Day St. Louis, and explained that he has been babysitting his granddaughter, McKenzie, and would return shortly.

He is said to have announced in March this year that he would retire in 15 months.

He has been associated with the American Lung Association of Eastern Missouri for many years now, and for a few months every year, he puts out the 4 Warn Aircast, a daily forecast on air quality. This is to promote public awareness on the health issues caused by poor air quality.

Other interests

Kent Ehrhardt with members of his band, The Blue Moon Blues

Ehrhardt is a guitarist and lead vocalist with a Blue Moon Blues band. He is also fond of motocross racing, and met with a serious accident shortly after moving to St Louis in the late 90s.
Awards

Ehrhardt has received a lot of recognition for his weathercast and coverage of extreme weather events. Some of his honors include The Florida Governor’s Hurricane Conference Media Award and The National Hurricane Conference Media Award. In 1999 and in 2002, he was awarded the Missouri Broadcasters Association Best Weathercase Award.

Community

He is fond of the sense of community he finds in St. Louis, and has spoken often about it. This was evident in 2013, when Kent misplaced his money after a bank visit. The $1400 he was missing was found by a 75-year-old, who reported it to the bank, and handed it back to him.

Ehrhardt has a reputation of being approachable and kind with those in his hometown. He often visits schools and other places to speak about meteorology and being a weatherman. He also says people ask him for forecasts for dates when they have weddings and parties planned, and he is happy to help them.