Beloved TODAY Show weatherman Al Roker, the smiling face America has woken up to for nearly three decades, has delivered devastating news: he is stepping away from the morning program he helped turn into a national institution. In an emotional statement released yesterday, the 71-year-old icon revealed that his ongoing health battles have reached a point of no return.

“After everything I’ve been through, I have to be honest with myself and with all of you,” Roker reportedly told close friends and colleagues. “There’s no magic remedy that can assist me in conquering this sickness anymore. My body is telling me it’s time.”

The announcement comes after years of brutal medical challenges that began with prostate cancer surgery in 2020, followed by life-threatening blood clots in his legs and lungs in 2022 that kept him hospitalized for weeks. Those emergencies forced him to miss the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade for the first time in 27 years—an absence that left millions of viewers in tears. Just when fans thought the worst was behind him, complications returned, along with multiple surgeries, chronic pain, and exhaustion that even Roker’s legendary optimism could no longer mask.

Behind the camera, sources say the once indefatigable forecaster has been struggling to walk the long studio hallways, relying on quiet moments off-air to catch his breath and fight waves of fatigue. “He kept pushing because he didn’t want to let America down,” one longtime staffer shared. “But the truth is, his body simply can’t keep up with the early-morning grind anymore.”

For 28 years, Al Roker has been more than a weatherman—he’s been family. From laughing through live blizzards to hugging strangers during hurricane coverage, from celebrating viewers’ birthdays to opening up about his own vulnerabilities, he turned a simple forecast into a daily dose of humanity. Watching him fight back tears while delivering this final message has left co-hosts Savannah Guthrie, Hoda Kotb, and Craig Melvin visibly shaken on set.

Though NBC has not confirmed an exact final air date, insiders suggest Roker wants to say a proper goodbye on the TODAY plaza—surrounded by the audience that has cheered him through every storm, both literal and personal. Until then, the man who taught generations that “there’s always a chance of sunshine” is asking for privacy as he prepares to close one of the most beloved chapters in morning television history.