A Tucson based TV anchor broke down on TV while announcing the death of her “beloved” colleague, Ana Orsini. Her demise was announced by her co-workers Tyler Butler and Carsyn Currier on Monday who decided to wear her favourite colour pink to honor Orsini.
The 28 year old morning anchor for a Tucson based CBS affiliate 13 News passed away following a struggle with brain aneurysm as per KOLD TV.
“Ana had been here at 13 News since June of 2023 and we are devastated by this loss,” Currier made the devastating announcement with a shaky voice and teary eyes as Butler gently touched her hand to comfort her.
Butler said, “We had the opportunity to work with every day and we do want you to know that what you saw with her on-air, the funny, crazy person she was — she was just like that off camera and more so.”
Following the heartbreaking news, the station also shared a highlight reel showcasing Orsini’s brief but “special” time at the station.
The reel featured moments from Orsini’s debut on the anchor desk, her affection for dogs, and her playful interactions with co-hosts both on-air and during live reports. Her morning co-anchors, who worked with her every day, also posted heartfelt tributes on their social media pages.
Currier also shared her grief on her Instagram account, “Waking up in the middle of the night to go to work is always challenging, but knowing I was going to work with Ana made it that much easier.”
She also shared that Ana’s family meant the world to her, “She was a proud daughter, sister, and the best dog mom to her baby boy, Harley. She was an advocate for animals, women’s rights, and one heck of a friend.”
Butler also took to Facebook and said, “Ana was a force of nature. I keep thinking about how at times, I’d make a self deprecating joke and she’d snap “Hey! Don’t talk about my friend like that!”
“A shooting star. A glowing soul. A firecracker,” evening anchor Brooke Wagner wrote in a Facebook post.
Weekend anchor Sean Mahoney also wrote, “My heart goes out to the Orsini family and the rest of my KOLD News 13 family. Rest easy Ana.”
“She was a peanut-butter-M&M-loving, platform-Ugg-wearing, pink-or-purple-Stanley-toting ray of sunshine, even at 4:00 in the morning,” KOLD-TV’s website stated.
A native of Colorado, Ana attended the University of Arizona before transferring to Texas A&M, where she graduated in 2018 with a degree in journalism and double minors in communications and sports management, according to the New York Post.
Orsini’s television career began in Lubbock, Texas, where she worked as an anchor and reporter. She then spent three years as a morning and midday anchor in Medford, Oregon, before joining KOLD-TV in June of last year.
“Ana’s friends and coworkers remember her as someone with bottomless empathy who always stood up for ‘the little guy,’” the statement from News 13 said.
“She was a smiling face most especially for all her newest and youngest coworkers, and she is known in all the newsrooms where she worked for taking them under her wing and being a strong mentor for both work and life.”
