Lisa Colagrossi, veteran WABC-TV reporter, dies of brain hemorrhage

Lisa Colagrossi, the veteran WABC-TV "Eyewitness News" reporter who collapsed after covering a story Thursday morning, has died of a brain hemorrhage, the station announced. She was 49.

Colagrossi had just finished reporting on a Queens house fire and was headed back to station headquarters in Manhattan when she collapsed, WABC-TV said in a statement released early Saturday.

The married mother of two was rushed to NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center in Manhattan and never regained consciousness.

"Lisa Colagrossi embodied the Eyewitness News spirit -- a straightforward reporter who told the truth, empathetic to the everyday citizens of the New York area, and demanding of those in power," said Dave Davis, president and general manager at WABC-TV. "All of us in the Channel 7 family are in shock over her sudden death. Our attention is now focused on helping her husband and two children through this difficult time."

Colagrossi was a resident of Stamford, Connecticut, "where she was a proud hockey mom," and is survived by her husband, Todd, and two sons, ages 11 and 14, the station said.

The veteran journalist, one of the most visible and familiar reporters on New York television, covered many major stories in the tri-state area during her 14-year tenure at WABC-TV. She joined the station in 2001 just days after the 9/11 terror attacks.

Her reports included the crash of American Airlines Flight 587 in the Rockaways in November 2001, as well as numerous reports on superstorm Sandy and its aftermath, the station said. She was also a prominent substitute anchor on "Eyewitness News" and most recently was a reporter for the station's noon and morning broadcasts.

Before joining WABC-TV, Colagrossi was a news anchor for WKMG-TV in Orlando. She began her journalism career at WKYC-TV in her hometown of Cleveland, before reporting for stations in West Virginia and Alabama.

She won several local Emmy Awards and numerous awards from the Florida Associated Press and the Society of Professional Journalists.