Boston News Anchor Hospitalized After Medical Emergency At Work

BOSTON, MA — Channel 5 anchor Doug Meehan's job duties came to a halt Thursday after he suffered a medical emergency after a day at work, Meehan said in a Tiktok video Saturday.

"Life moves pretty fast," Meehan said in the short video, which was seemingly filmed from a hospital bed Saturday afternoon. "Thursday was hosting a beautiful event at Gillette Stadium. By Thursday night, I was being rushed to the hospital in an ambulance because of a blockage in my bowel."

Meehan added that he had just had a nasogastric (or "NG") tube removed. According to the Cleveland Clinic, the tube is inserted through the nose, down the esophagus, and into the stomach. In Meehan's case, as is the case with many bowel blockages, the tube was placed to help "relieve pressure and prevent further complications by draining fluid or air."

"That was not fun," Meehan said, adding that more updates were to come.

According to the Mayo Clinic, intestinal obstruction is a blockage that keeps food or liquid from passing through your small intestine or colon.

"Causes of intestinal obstruction may include fibrous bands of tissue (adhesions) in the abdomen that form after surgery; hernias; colon cancer; certain medications; or strictures from an inflamed intestine caused by certain conditions, such as Crohn's disease or diverticulitis," the clinic said.

According to the clinic, signs and symptoms of an intestinal obstruction include:

• Crampy abdominal pain that comes and goes
• Loss of appetite
• Constipation
• Vomiting
• Inability to have a bowel movement or pass gas
• Swelling of the abdomen

Without treatment, the blocked parts of the intestine can die, leading to serious problems, the clinic said. However, the condition can successfully be treated with prompt medical care.

A graduate of Westfield State University Meehan received his Bachelor of Arts in Communication before eventually becoming co-anchor of NewsCenter 5's weekday morning EyeOpener newscasts, according to his station biography.

Prior to this role, Doug was co-anchor of WCVB’s weekend EyeOpener newscasts. He came to WCVB in December of 2015 from KPNX-TV in Phoenix, AZ where he served for nearly three years as a news anchor.

Underneath his TikTok video, which has garnered more than 130,000 views as of Tuesday morning, fans took to the comments to express well wishes and their hopes to see Meehan back on the air soon.

"Doug, hang in there," one commenter wrote. "I hope they were able to clear the blockage. I’ve been missing waking up to you. Well…I'm married, but you know what I mean."