A TV anchor in New York who appeared disheveled and confused during a live newscast last week has since left the job and is hoping to move past the incident.
Heather Kovar stumbled through a few segments while anchoring for WRGB in Albany, N.Y.
The Emmy-winning reporter said in a previous statement that she had worked a double shift and was “sleep-deprived and exhausted” after returning from time off spent with her dying father.
“It has been an exhausting time using my time off to fly to family in between shifts,” Kovar told People.
“I was hoping to create a better situation,” she continued. “I just hope people will understand as I move forward in what is next.”
Kovar issued a more detailed statement to NBC News about her departure from the Albany affiliate.
“I recently returned early from family leave following my dad’s death,” Kovar explained in the statement. “On Friday, I notified the station I would not be renewing my contract which expires July 31. Saturday I was scheduled to work the early morning 6 a.m. shift and the evening shift. I was sleep-deprived and exhausted.”
Because she had already gave her notice, Kovar told People she and WRGB handled the on-air kerfuffle “amicably.”
The July 9 broadcast showed Kovar stammering while reporting on the weather in Texas, where she also misidentified one of her co-workers.
She also went off the rails while speaking about a shooting in Ohio, which she started by saying, “We have to tell you, also, you know, like the other news that’s happening in the area and across the, you know, the area and the nation. A four … let me tell you about this … a four-year-old girl is actually dead, another man is clinging to life after a shooting in Ohio.”
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