Luana Munoz, a weekend news anchor at Hearst, nearly broke down in tears Tuesday night while covering Spectrum 13 News journalist Dylan Lyons’ death.
Lyons, 24, died from a gunshot wound Tuesday after 19-year-old Keith Melvin Moses allegedly opened fire on five people in three different locations. A woman in her 20s and a nine-year-old child also died from a series of related shootings.
“I apologize,” Munoz said in tears. “This is really difficult to cover. It is very emotional here at ORMC. I’m not even gonna turn the camera because there are people here who knew that reporter, his fiancé and I were just embracing. But I will say this, it is nice to see all the media, we come together in solidarity in this moment. This is every reporter’s absolute worst nightmare. We go home at night afraid that something like this will occur and that is what happened here.”
“This is every reporter’s worst nightmare.” @Luana_Munoz – I couldn’t agree more. Thank you for your raw reporting tonight on such a difficult day.pic.twitter.com/J9dqrvQ56L
— Mireya Villarreal (@ABCMireya) February 23, 2023
Lyons and photojournalist Jesse Walden with Spectrum 13 News were shot after they arrived at a scene to cover an initial shooting that killed the woman in her 20s, who had reportedly been acquainted with the alleged shooter. The two were transported to the hospital where Lyons was pronounced dead. (RELATED: 19-Year-Old Kills TV News Reporter, Two Others In Series Of Shootings: Sheriff’s Office)
Moses allegedly shot the mother and her nine-year-old child in their home later that afternoon, leading to the child’s death, the Orange County Sheriff’s John Mina said.
Spectrum 13 News mourned the loss of Lyons following his death. His friends said he “loved” his career.
“He took his job very seriously. He loved his career. He loved what he did,” said Spectrum Sports 360 reporter and friend, Josh Miller. “He loved the community, telling the stories of people, reporting on the news, and he was just passionate about what he did.”
Lyons grew up in Philadelphia and graduated from the University of Central Florida, the outlet said. He then entered a career in journalism and broadcasting. His family set up a GoFundMe page to help pay for funeral costs.