Former WEWS NewsChannel5 reporter Tony Gaskins dies of heart attack at 56

CLEVELAND - Former NewsChannel5 reporter Tony Gaskins has died. He was 56 years old.

Gaskins' family said he suffered a heart attack Sunday morning and was taken to Lakewood Hospital for treatment.

He died Tuesday morning.

Gaskins worked at WEWS NewsChannel5 from 1987 until early 2006. He was a general assignment reporter who late in his career at WEWS focused on city government.

He was arguably best known for his deep voice, and his emphasis on the word "news" in "NewsChannel5."

Before coming to NewsChannel5, Gaskins worked in Syracuse as a reporter, and he anchored the weekend news. He began his career in Harrisburg, Pa. in 1976, as a reporter and weekend public affairs radio show host. In Syracuse, he anchored a weekday award winning newscast before moving into television.

Gaskins won an Emmy award in 1989 for an underground railroad special. He tracked the path slaves followed from the South to Ohio and into Canada. He attended Harrisburg Area Community College and majored in communications and photography.

He most recently worked for the city of Cleveland.

Gaskins is survived by his ex-wife and young son.

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