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Matt Moore, a live-feed photojournalist at KBTX-TV, died yesterday while covering a gas well explosion in Robertson County, Texas. Moore, 23, graduated from Texas A&M in May 2003 with a degree in journalism.
Mike Wright, general manager of KBTX-TV, said Moore and three other journalists were setting up for a live news report next to Wood Field in Hearne around 6 p.m. when the 15-foot mast on the live-news van came into contact with high voltage wiring. The van was parked at the time of the accident.
Wright said the accident is still under investigation. Moore, who is from Temple, had been working for KBTX-TV since September 2003, Wright said.
Michelle Peltier, a news anchor at KBTX-TV, said the van's mast is raised to ensure better reception during live news reports from the field.
"Matt was very hard-working and passionate about his job," Peltier said.
"He had a quick wit and a great sense of humor - he was really a guy you hoped they would send on assignment with you."
Peltier said Moore's death is particularly hard because of the family environment at KBTX-TV.
Charlie Haldeman, a former KBTX-TV anchorman who is now a broadcast media specialist for the City of College Station, went to the KBTX-TV studio to help out his colleagues when he heard of the tragedy.
"I remember Matt as an easygoing guy who had an awesome sense of humor. If you weren't paying attention, you wouldn't catch his wit," Haldeman said.
KBTX-TV is a CBS affiliate serving the Bryan-College Station area.
