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Jim Cantore trolled for dramatic Ida coverage even as man does cartwheels behind him

Cantore was in New Orleans to cover Hurricane Ida but instead became the butt of jokes on Twitter for his dramatic coverage. Here's the truth

Hurricane Ida might have wreaked havoc across Louisiana, bringing life to a standstill, but on social media, people are calling out The Weather Channel for allegedly faking severe wind reports. Many users on TikTok were trolling and mocking Jim Cantore for his coverage of the hurricane. He was in New Orleans for the 16th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina but was quick to become the butt of jokes. The Weather Channel later provided proof that the weatherman wasn't faking it.

In videos shared by social media users, Cantore seems to be covering Ida dramatically but people all around him walked calmly and went about their day as usual. And social media users did not mince their words when mocking Cantore for his weather coverage. Having hit Cuba, New Orleans and Louisiana, Hurricane Ida has been reportedly described as an "extremely dangerous major hurricane". The hurricane is reportedly moving ahead with a sustained speed of winds blowing at 241 kilometers per hour. Ida made landfall on the same day that Hurricane Katrina ravaged Louisiana and Mississippi 16 years ago and its winds tied it for the fifth-strongest hurricane to ever hit the mainland.

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"What is up with the weather channel dudes? They can hardly stand, yet 2 dudes are strolling down the street virtually unfazed? #ida #cantore #goodloe," one user wrote. In the video, one can see Cantore struggle in front of the camera while people walk behind him calmly. 

"Meanwhile, you have someone doing a cartwheel behind Jim Cantore as he does his live coverage of Hurricane Ida," one user tweeted, sharing a video of a person literally doing a cartwheel right behind Cantore as he tries to deliver weather news in a dramatic fashion.

"LOL, they’re just trolling Cantore and all the disaster porn people from the Wearher channel now," one user wrote. Another user pointed out, "The reporter bracing literally acted like he was going to fall over numerous times. They cut the feed when guys strolled by". Another video shared on social media shows a different angle. "Jim Cantore acting as if he is going to be blown away any minute while pedestrian calmly walks by. #idahurricane," one user wrote. 

One user pointed out, "that man even looks like he's got an ice cream".

Other videos shared on Twitter show how only Cantore is affected by the heavy winds and nobody else around him. "Utility crew destroys Jim Cantore," one user wrote. In the video, a man strolls from behind Cantore and looks directly into the camera as if mocking him. In another video, another man walks calmly behind Cantore, looking at sky as the wind leaves him unmoved, and then looking directly at the reporter and the camera. 

One user asked, "Why, when they have a serious weather events and some poor sap is standing outside in it, do they always go to the reporter in the studio all safe and dry?" To which, a social media user explained where Cantore is going wrong, "It's because they embellish the weather. For sure it's bad, but these weather guys make it look worse than it is a lot of the time."

Finally, one user wrote, "This sums up the #mainstreammedia versus the American people… every single day."

Was Jim Cantore faking Hurricane Ida coverage? 

Fact-checking website Snopes was quick to debunk this news of Cantore faking it for the cameras. Even The Weather Channel updated their Facebook page to show the weather Cantore was facing while reporting. It showed Cantore walk away from the alley, to debunk rumors and reports that the coverage was faked. 

Snopes pointed out that the overturned dumpster was a powerful example of the winds that day. Hurricane Ida, a category 4 storm had reached wind speeds of around 150 mph in Louisiana. The website explained that Cantore was stepping into an alley between buildings to show viewers the power of Ida’s wind speeds. The alley was offscreen to the right. In both videos, Cantore was standing next to the New Orleans Marriott Hotel on Canal Street. The man standing in the background was simply behind the cover of a building, shielding him from most of the winds.

During Cantore’s coverage on the street corner, he often stepped back toward his camera crew, who were situated behind cover against a building and under an awning for the Creole House Restaurant & Oyster Bar. It can be clearly seen in the videos that the people who “photo bombed” Cantore, whether by cartwheel or by casually standing in the background, do not prove he was “faking it.” Cantore was in an alley with the rushing winds, while the others were protected by the cover of a nearby building.