A meteorologist based in Indiana was suddenly fired from his job after a report emerged in July 2026 that alleged he was involved in a “creepy” relationship with a much younger colleague. The meteorologist, Jesse Walker, stated on October 2 that he would be leaving Terre-Haute Indiana outlet WTWO TV. Walker, 60, also stated that he was changing the trajectory of his career by starting his own weather company.
Walker revealed that he would be joined in this new venture by former WTWO meteorologist Alex Kerkhove. Not long after making the announcement, however, the powers-that-be at the station informed him that he was terminated effective immediately. “Today they walked you out the door and didn’t let you say goodbye,” Kerkhove went on to say in a social media post supporting her mentor.
She started the post by saying, “Jesse Walker! I am sorry that the station treated someone that has dedicated his entire career to serving a community like they did.” Kerkhove then heaped praise on Walker for his decades of school visits, severe-weather coverage, and community events, before going on to credit him with teaching her how to “just be yourself.”
According to a report from Mediaite, Kerkhove was fired from WTWO in June following accusations she made against the station, claiming that they were monitoring conversations she was having with Walker. The media published a report a month later in which two unnamed WTWO employees referred to the relationship as an “extremely creepy bond.”
The two employees said that Walker and Kerkhove became closely connected not long after she graduated from Purdue University. One of the sources said that the two quickly became “obsessed with each other” before the station even hired Kerkhove. Sources stated that no one has claimed the relationship was romantic, but that it was something other than professional.
“When she wasn’t doing weather, she was attached to Jesse at the hip, and this would go on even after her shift would end,” the insider told the media. “I have no idea if these two were romantically involved, but he’s like 40 years older than her. It was very creepy,” another source added. Both Kerkhove and Walker have described the relationship as mentorship and friendship.
Kerkhove once said that management spoke to her and asked her to limit her interactions with Walker, saying she could only talk to him for 15 to 20 minutes while they were working because management watched security cameras. The young woman referred to Walker as her “rock” and said that he “fought for me time and time again.”
"*" indicates required fields
“Several weeks ago, Jesse Walker asked to be released from his contract with WTWO, and WTWO decided to honor Jesse’s request,” a Nexstar spokesperson told The New York Post concerning the firing. “Prior to his departure last week, WTWO internally celebrated Jesse’s achievements and contributions to the community and worked with him to produce an on-air video tribute which aired Sept. 30 and is now on the WTWO website.”
Featured Image: screenshot from embedded video