Like any good local TV station, NBC 4 was all over Hurricane Sandy yesterday. But like few of its competitors, NBC 4 has an unbeatable asset in Pat Collins. (Our love for the quirky newsman is well-established and largely unrivaled.)

But as much as it breaks our heart to say it, Collins just wasn’t really himself yesterday. Sure, he was out and about, but his coverage of the storm lacked the usual panache of his on-the-ground reports. Wendy Rieger, though, man was she on.

As the City Paper faithfully documented, Rieger, who was dispatched to Rehoboth Beach for the storm, did her best to bring at least some levity to the reporting task at hand. She hung out in the bathroom to watch ceiling tiles move to and fro due to high winds, said “wow” a whole lot, compared the hurricane to her dating life (see below), and gave a background look into what reporting a hurricane is like (lots of junk food, it seems). This apparently isn’t the first time she made a name for herself with her weather reporting, either.

Don’t get us wrong—we still love Pat Collins. But Wendy really stepped up her game this time. The two don’t have to compete, though—just imagine how powerful the duo could be if they teamed up for the next weather emergency.