AM/FM radio proved essential during Hurricane Isaias, with audience data showing elevated and resilient listening across Gulf Coast and Atlanta markets as the storm made landfall and moved inland.
The latest blog from the Cumulus/Westwood One Active Audio Group tracks how DTS AutoStage next-day audience measurement captured how drivers and listeners turned to local radio for critical updates during the first hurricane of the 2026 Atlantic season. Isaias came ashore on the northern Gulf Coast late Friday, October 9, placing the Mobile, Alabama, and Pensacola and Panama City, Florida, radio markets directly in its path before continuing inland and reaching Atlanta on Saturday, October 10.
In Mobile on landfall day, hour-by-hour in-car AM/FM listening occasions showed residents largely heeded shelter warnings. From 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., however, car traffic ran higher than normal as people completed last-minute shopping and moved to safety. By Sunday, October 11, Mobile morning in-car occasions had recovered to 86% of historical levels; from noon to midnight, recovery reached 98%.
Station-level results underscored radio’s role. In Atlanta, News and Talk WSB recorded its highest shares and cumes as Isaias arrived. In Panama City, Christian stations posted strong audience growth for the storm week. The Cumulus Pensacola cluster saw shares double versus a typical day. In Mobile on Friday, the Cumulus cluster share rose 30% compared with a typical day.
The data illustrate how local AM/FM radio maintained and, in several cases, expanded its audience during a major weather event, serving as a primary source of information as conditions deteriorated and then began to stabilize.