SHORT TAKES : Radio Host Has Stroke On Air
A 60-year-old public radio personality suffered a stroke while hosting his classical music show Tuesday morning and died a few hours later.
Listeners to WETA-FM heard four minutes of empty air after announcer Bill Cerri began garbling his words and left his open microphone about 9 a.m.
Long pauses are not unusual for classical music stations, but listeners sensed something was amiss and started calling the station, said Joe Davis, chief engineer for WETA.
“Our listeners were right on top of the situation,” Davis said. “Gosh, they knew that something was wrong with Bill. They were calling immediately.”
Cerri was taken to National Hospital for Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation in Arlington, Va., where he died at 1:38 p.m.
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