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Vanished From the Airwaves: Where is Jodi Huisentruit?
Viewers of KIMT-TV in Mason City, Iowa, may or may not have noticed the absence of anchor Jodi Huisentruit on the morning of June 27, 1995, but her co-workers certainly did. [1]
Jodi wasn’t the type to just skip out on work. So when Jodi still wasn’t on set when the cameras started rolling on the 6 o’clock morning news broadcast, KIMT-TV employees knew something was very wrong.
But they didn’t expect to still be wondering where Jodi is more than 25 years later.
Something is Amiss
Jodi Huisentruit typically showed up for work between the ungodly hours of three and four in the morning. Since it wasn’t entirely unlike her to get to the studio a bit late, no one was surprised when she didn’t come bounding through the door at 3 a.m., sharp.
Jodi and her assistant Amy Kuns had an unwritten rule: They would call each other if one of them didn’t arrive when they were supposed to.
So, with 4 a.m. fast approaching and Jodi still not present, Amy Kuns, the show’s producer, called Jodi at home.
Kuns said:
“Everything sounded normal, like I had just woken her up. ‘What time is it?’ She asked the question, so I told her, ‘Jodie it’s about 10 to four, you need to come into work.’ How much time is left to produce on the show? I mean, she was obviously thinking, she was aware, she just knew she had overslept and she had to get into work. I didn’t hear anything out of the ordinary. Nothing.”
Just before cameras started rolling at 6 a.m., Jodi was still absent, so Kuns called her for a second time. [5] The phone rang and rang but no one answered.
Amy was a little pissed. Jodi’s absence forced her to do the entire show by herself, which meant extra — and quick — planning and preparation at the last minute.
“I was halfway mad because I had to do all of…
