Brandon Robinson

Eastern Kentucky has lost one of its favorite sons. Former WYMT Chief Forecaster and Harlan County native Brandon Robinson died Sunday morning, August 31, 2025 at the Greg and Noreen Wells Bluegrass Hospice Care Center in Hazard. He was 42. Brandon, affectionately known to many as B-Rob, was born on May 12, 1983 and was a proud native of Cumberland in Harlan County. He graduated from Cumberland High School in 2001, received an associate degree at Southeast Kentucky Community and Technical College in 2003 and graduated from Morehead State University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications in 2006. Brandon began his career at WYMT-TV in Hazard on May 14, 2007. During his time at WYMT he did just about everything, from producing to reporting to news anchoring. However, he spent most of his stint on the WYMT weather team as the morning forecaster. He spent hours on the air covering several major weather events in eastern Kentucky including the March 2, 2012 tornado outbreak and the July, 2022 flood. Other career highlights included interviewing one of his heroes, meteorologist James Spann, after a major tornado outbreak in Alabama in 2011 and covering the total solar eclipse in western Kentucky in 2017. He was also a familiar face during local festivals, charity events and spoke at countless schools from Pulaski to Pike County. He frequently volunteered at Relay for Life events even before his own cancer battle. While Brandon spent most of his career at WYMT, he did go back to his alma mater at Southeast Kentucky Community and Technical College in Cumberland from 2015 to 2017 to become the Director of Media and Communications. In April, 2025, the Brandon Robinson Porch was dedicated on the Cumberland campus of SKCTC and the Brandon Robinson Communication Fund was launched. Brandon also briefly served as Harlan County Deputy Judge-Executive in 2019 before deciding a government job was not for him. Brandon was open and transparent with his viewers when he had weight loss surgery and later when he received the life-changing diagnosis of brain cancer in 2016. Since then, he has seen doctors from Cleveland to Tampa, undergone three brain surgeries, numerous rounds of chemotherapy and radiation as well as an experimental treatment to fight the disease. His journey also opened the door for him and his wife Stephanie to start a charity organization known as “Grey Matters Whitesburg, Inc.” Through Grey Matters, the two co-founded an annual 5K/10K race which raises awareness for brain cancer warriors and survivors. The May, 2025 race honored Brandon and raised thousands of dollars. He was already having mobility issues at that point but cheered everyone on until the last person crossed the finish line. Brandon won several awards, including the first Emmy in WYMT history, but he said his greatest accomplishment was protecting the people of the mountains when Mother Nature was at her worst. He married the love of his life, Stephanie on October 18, 2014 in Folly Beach, South Carolina, which he often refers to as the “best day of his life.” After living in Hazard for several years with other WYMT co-workers in what was known as the “WYMT Frat House” or the “Airport Gardens Bureau”, Brandon and Stephanie made their home in the Colson community of Letcher County. Together the two have a Boston Terrier named Linus who is more like their child and more recently adopted another furry friend, Icy. The two could also be heard on the radio occasionally, even hosting their own show, “Real Country with B-Rob and Steph” for a period on WTCW. Besides forecasting weather, a few of Brandon’s other favorite things include Christmas (he frequently played Santa Claus), Charlie Brown and the Peanuts, Star Trek, reading, going to concerts and watching TV. Not surprisingly, one of his favorite movies was “Twister” and he could probably quote all of “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.” Brandon was a friend to all and always had a positive outlook on life. He had a memorable laugh…and he laughed often. Even when his health was declining, he would greet you with a smile and tell you he loved you. In the final weeks of his life, many former co-workers and friends came to see him. Some traveled many miles, a testament to how beloved he was. The last post he shared on his personal Facebook page said: “Always choose kindness. You never know what battles someone is facing.” Now he is cancer-free, been reunited with his parents and has touched the face of God. “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” 2 Timothy 4:7. 

Brandon was preceded in death by his parents: Eldon Wayne Robinson and Catherine McKnight.

Funeral: 1:00 O'clock P.M. Wednesday, September 3, 2025 at the Whitesburg First Baptist Church with Bufford Combs and others officiating. Visitation: 5:00 P.M. - 9:00 P.M. Tuesday at the Whitesburg, First Baptist Church. Burial will follow in the Bill Adams Cemetery at Colson, Kentucky. 

In lieu of flowers to continue his legacy, donations are suggested to Grey Matters Whitesburg.