Nbc Channel 5

NBC 5 sportscaster Daryl Hawks found dead in Atlanta at age 38

In an eerie deja-vu, the sudden death of another black male lead sports anchor for WMAQ-Channel 5 has left officials and staff at the NBC-owned news station reeling.

Sports anchor Daryl Hawks, who joined Channel 5 in July 2008, was found dead Thursday in his hotel room in Atlanta, where he had gone to cover Thursday night’s Game 6 of the Bulls-Hawks NBA playoff series.

Hawks, of River Forest, was 38 — only a year older than the late NBC5 sports anchor Darrian Chapman, who had been at the station only 16 months when in October 2002 he collapsed and died suddenly while playing a game of hockey.

“We are all stunned right now,” Frank Whittaker, NBC5’s Station Manager and Vice President of News, said. “Daryl was a great member of our sports team, and was so excited about covering the Bulls during this playoff run.”

Hawks leaves behind a wife, Sandy, their children ages 5 and 2, and a teenage son from a previous relationship.

Hotel employees found Hawks unresponsive in his room at about 9:30 a.m. Thursday, according to the news station.

Hawks was rushed to Emory University Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 11:48 a.m.

“It’s surreal,” said CBS2 lead sports anchor Ryan Baker, who joined NBC5 as an anchor/reporter less than a year after Chapman’s death, and was replaced by Hawks after leaving for CBS in April 2008.

“Daryl and I flew down to Atlanta on the same flight Wednesday. We laughed and talked and he seemed fine. When we landed around 5 p.m., I said, ‘Maybe I’ll see you a little later,’” said Baker. “This morning, we were all here for the Bulls’ shoot-around, and after my interviews, I asked everyone, ‘Where’s Daryl?’ No one had seen him.”

When Baker returned to his hotel, he got the shocking news from the WMAQ photographer on assignment with Hawks.

The photographer had asked security at the Omni Hotel inside the CNN Center where Hawks was staying to check on the sportscaster, after Hawks missed a wake-up call.

“I thought of his wife and children, and the folks at NBC5, who I had seen still dealing with the aftermath of Darrian’s death when I first got there. For them to have to deal with this again? Unbelievable. And it’s just eerie that Darrian and Daryl were of similar age, background and stages in life, same young families...,” Baker said.

Controversy! NBC Channel 5 Anchor Kim Fischer Makes Down Syndrome ...

Unfortunately, ALL OF US at some time or other says something that can be taken out of context or something inappropriate and truly not meaning any harm or disrespect. This is definitely one of those times.

I’m certain we all agree that ACTIONS speak much louder than words. With that in mind, do even just a miniscule amount of research on Kim Fischer and you’ll see that her countless ACTIONS within our community (especially with kids & animals) speak DECIBALS over her words, which in my opinion are seriously being taken out of context.

I’m personally witness to that because she has given a great deal of time and effort to an event I support that benefits kids who suffer from varying types of disfiguring and disabling conditions. Not to mention all the other organizations to which I know she gives a lot of her time.

I’m curious to know if anyone, including Uncle Barky, who wants to be so quick to judge actually donates any respectable amount of his/her time and/or money to charitable organizations. If so, then why try to hurt those who are on your side in helping better the quality of life for those less fortunate within our community just because they make a mistake? It would behoove our community as a whole to save the verbal attacks and finger-pointing for those who do very little or nothing for our community.

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