These on-location reporters have a death wish.One day, one of these reporters will be killed on the air and the media will turn them into a saint.
It is stupid, reckless and pointless. Put a stationary camera out there and take cover.
There is a large demand for reporters to stand out in the elements during these storms, bowing in the wind while hanging on to their hats and exclaiming "things are really picking up out here." I'm talking huge audiences. Millions of housewives watching at home, clutching their cup of coffee in their nightgowns, while gasping in suspense. It's very addictive television. I know. I have relatives that watch the wall-to-wall coverage from morning to night and they think that the world is literally coming to an end. My own mother calls me to tell me not to go hiking today because the winds from Florida might somehow get to the woods of Connecticut and strand me out there.
Otherwise the TV stations wouldn't bother putting their reporters out into the storm. But there is a huge audience for it and so it shall continue to be done.