It all started only two days after Superstorm Sandy - I got a text message from a friend with a picture of a heartwrenching note. It was written by a victim of Sandy, only known as "Mike". From reading the note, it looked like Mike hadn't survived. It was literally his goodbye message to his father and the world. And then things got really dramatic.

Here's the original note that I received:

 

Mike Iann's Original Note
Mike Iann's Original Note
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At first, I wasn't quite sure what to do with it - was it a hoax? A joke? Who was it actually written by? At this point, nobody that I had spoken to about it really knew what became of "Mike".

I decided to take a shot in the dark and call the phone number on the note. Astonishingly, not only did I get through to Mike's dad, Tony, but the next words out of his mouth shocked me even more:

"He's right here, would you like to speak to him?"

Of course I said yes. I immediately went into "journalist mode", hit record in the WOBM studio, and captured one of the most amazing interviews that I've ever had in my career:

Of course, most of us now know the story of Mike Iann, a story that truly went viral, from major national news outlets to worldwide media. Mike's story captivated the world.

Last night, however, was probably the most in-depth look that we got into exactly what Mike went through, on The Weather Channel's "Hurricane 360".

Mike's story was one of a number of harrowing stories featured from Ocean County locals who survived Sandy. For many of us who watched, it was a stark reminder of just how bad it was.

But, I also think that it's a testament to our strength. We've come a long way in almost two years. We still have a lot of work to do, and the shadows of Sandy can still be seen in Ocean County, but we are a resilient community who have shown that we can survive the worst.

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