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Darcy Pohland, a veteran WCCO-TV
reporter who made a career of broadcasting despite an accident that
left her paralyzed and using a wheelchair, has died. She was
48.


      Pohland's caregiver found her Friday morning in her Minneapolis
home, WCCO-TV spokeswoman Kiki Rosatti said.


      Several of Pohland's colleagues said on WCCO-AM that Pohland had
not been feeling well the previous night when a few colleagues
visited her at home.

      Pohland broke her neck in the summer of 1983 when she dove into
the shallow end of a swimming pool. She had been an intern at
WCCO-TV before her accident, and in 1986 returned to a part-time
off-camera job. But in 1994 she convinced station managers to let
her report from her wheelchair.

      Pohland had limited movement of her arms and was able to use
adaptive devices to carry out essential functions such as typing,
WCCO-TV news director Scott Libin said. Her co-workers would
routinely help her with things such as clipping a microphone on for
a live shot or helping her with her coat, he said.
     


 But he said Pohland's limitations didn't define her.


      "Darcy was not a quadriplegic reporter," Libin said. "She was
a reporter who had a passion for Minnesota sports and a lot of dear
friends and a great resume, and also by the way a disability."


      Pohland was a Mendota Heights native, and a graduate of Sibley
High School and the University of Minnesota.

Gallery

Darcy Pohland, a veteran WCCO-TV
reporter who was one of the few quadriplegic TV reporters in the
country, has died. She was 48.

WCCO-TV's Darcy Pohland dies

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