‘Hero of Harvey’ Jeff Lindner nominated for weatherperson of the year by consumer advocates



>>> Click through to see more on Jeff Lindner. Jeff Lindner's nonstop updates during Hurricane Harvey garnered widespread media attention.

>>> Click through to see more on Jeff Lindner. Jeff Lindner's nonstop updates during Hurricane Harvey garnered widespread media attention. Photo: Steve Gonzales, Houston Chronicle Photo: Steve Gonzales, Houston Chronicle Image 1 of / 3 Caption Close ‘Hero of Harvey’ Jeff Lindner nominated for weatherperson of the year by consumer advocates 1 / 3 Back to Gallery

'Hero of Harvey' Jeff Lindner is in the running to be named outstanding weatherperson of 2018 by the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH). The nonprofit is the country's leading consumer advocate for strengthening homes and safeguarding families from natural and man-made disasters.

Via a Facebook poll, five finalists were selected out of a field of 70 for their leadership during the 2018 weather and disaster season as well as for their year-round contributions to disaster safety, according to a press release on Friday.

Lindner, a meteorologist who has worked at the Harris County Flood Control District since 2003, provided nonstop updates during Hurricane Harvey, garnering widespread media attention.

His "steady, straight advice to citizens as the flood waters rose," gave Houston-area residents the knowledge they needed to know whether or not to evacuate. Lindner's reports gave guidance on how to survive what has been described as "biblical flooding," the release says.

RELATED: GoFundMe to send Houston meteorologist Jeff Lindner on vacation smashes goal

What's more, Lindner was so instrumental in assisting citizens throughout Hurricane Harvey that Mayor Sylvester Turner declared May 2 as "Jeff Lindner Day" in Houston and the public set up a GoFundMe account to raise funds to send him on vacation.

Lindner, a native Houstonian who graduated from Texas A&M with a Bachelor of Science degree in meteorology, promptly donated the funds to help flood victims.

RELATED: Good guy and meteorologist Jeff Lindner makes good on post-Harvey donation promises

The four other worthy nominees include executive weather producer at The Weather Channel, Matthew Sitkowski, and chief meteorologist at WGN-TV Chicago, Tom Skilling.

Chief meteorologist at ABC 33/40 and host of WeatherBrains, a weekly 90-minute netcast that's all about weather, James Spann, and Weatherboy, the cumulative effort of a team of people from Miami to Hawaii who are passionate about connecting people with the world of weather, round out the list.

The 2019 winner of FLASH's outstanding weatherperson of the year will be announced on February 1, ahead of National Weatherperson's Day.

Marcy de Luna is a digital reporter specializing in social media, the famous, and food. You can follow her on Twitter @MarcydeLuna and Facebook @MarcydeLuna. Read her stories on our breaking news site, Chron.com, and on our subscriber site, HoustonChronicle.com. | Marcy.deLuna@chron.com | Text CHRON to 77453 to receive breaking news alerts by text message