ABC13 Houston - Breaking news & weather

The ABC13 application delivers the most current breaking news and weather updates with personalized alerts tailored to your preferences! Experience more live video content than ever with our continuous live stream available around the clock.

HOME

- The ABC13 live stream is conveniently located at the top of the app for easy access

- Alerts for breaking news and weather are also prominently displayed at the upper part of the screen

- Stay informed on the major events occurring in the Houston region and beyond

WATCH

- Access all live streams from ABC13 gathered in one location

- Looking to catch up on videos that aired during newscasts or full broadcasts you may have missed? You can find them under the “videos” section

- Utilize the picture-in-picture feature to continue watching while using other applications on your device

EXPLORE

- Discover a news article by typing a keyword into the search function

- Browse through news categorized by topics, such as 13 Investigates, Texas True Crime, Localish, and others!

WEATHER

- Easily select your preferred locations to receive hourly weather updates and a 7-day forecast

- Access real-time Doppler maps along with comprehensive weather data

- Receive alerts for severe weather conditions and traffic, ensuring you stay informed before heading out

MY NEWS

- Keep up with stories that are important to you by selecting topics that resonate with your interests

- “My News” creates a personalized feed based on the subjects and locations you choose

- Set customized alerts for topics and areas of interest, ranging from entertainment news to sports updates and more

ABOUT ABC13——ABC13 Turns 70: KTRK-TV first launched on Nov. 20, 1954

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- All month long, ABC13 is celebrating 70 years of serving the Houston area. On November 20, 1954, KTRK signed on the air for the very first time. And the rest, as they say, is history.

The station went live at 8:30 p.m. from the University of Houston campus at the school's Music Hall. The celebration was complete with performances from the Houston Symphony, Metropolitan Opera singers, and even a ventriloquist.

ABC13's new home inspired the Astrodome

On October 6, 1960, Judge Roy Hofheinz and Houston architect Herman Lloyd were on hand for the groundbreaking ceremony of ABC13's new studios at 3310 Bissonnet, the home of the station to this day. Lloyd was responsible for the design, which was called a "state-of-the-art television station of tomorrow."

The building's lobby and the main offices overlooked a landscaped patio, complete with palm trees and even a pool. But the creme-de-la-creme of the building was its domed roof, which housed two full-sized television studios.

ABC13's domed design fascinated Judge Hofheinz, who had just secured a professional baseball franchise for Houston and dreamed of building the team a new indoor stadium.

Hofheinz reached out to Herman Lloyd to build the new stadium, with a domed roof, just like ABC13's.

ABC13 moved into its domed building four years before the Astrodome. At the time, the station had state-of-the-art equipment for two 15-minute newscasts a day.

ABC13 icons

Dave Ward joined the team in 1966 as the first street reporter/photographer. Two years later, he was promoted to anchor.

Ward signed off from ABC13 on May 2, 2017. He hit a historic milestone in 2016, when he celebrated 50 years at KTRK. His tenure made him the longest-running local TV news anchor in the world at the same station, in the same market.

Long known as the "Voice of Houston," Ward has also earned a number of awards over his career, while being equally devoted to community service.

He was also instrumental in establishing Crime Stoppers in Houston, which served as a model for other Crime Stoppers organizations around the globe.

Channel 13's beloved mascot

In the early 1950s, when KTRK was assigned the potentially unlucky Channel 13, station owners decided to embrace it! A black cat was named the station mascot and incorporated into our logo.

All that was left was a name for the soon-to-be children's television host. The station hosted a contest, and a viewer sent in artwork that had KTRK with an "I" between each letter. Management liked how it incorporated the station's call letters, so the black cat mascot was called KiTiRiK.

With a catsuit, whiskers drawn on her face using an eyebrow pencil, and a winning personality, Bunny Orsak played the role of KiTiRiK and became a Houston TV phenomenon still remembered by viewers to this day.

Many Houston kids celebrated their birthdays on KiTiRiK's live show, learning valuable lessons with her puppet friends.

In 1974, after a 16-year run, the KiTiRiK show aired its final show.

Download ABC13 apps for streaming TV and mobile news

The ABC13 Houston 24/7 streaming channel gives you free access to ABC13 Houston News and your favorite Eyewitness News content, along with breaking news, live events, and original programming anytime! Building on our commitment to serve our communities, our apps for Roku, Amazon, Apple TV, and Samsung TV will elevate the local news experience with the ability to watch live newscasts, breaking news coverage, weather updates and Localish's popular storytelling content, seamlessly in a streaming environment. To download the free app, search "ABC13 Houston" on your home streaming devices.

To watch on Amazon Fire TV:

Search "ABC13 Houston" in the app store

Download the ABC13 Houston App

There is no login required

To watch on Amazon Prime Video:

Open the Prime Video app or press the Prime Video button on your remote

Choose Live TV

Under the list of content categories, choose "Local News"

Scroll down to find ABC13 Houston

To watch on Apple TV:

Search "ABC13 Houston" in the Apple App Store

Download the ABC13 Houston app

There is no login required

To watch on Google TV:

Search "ABC13 Houston" in the Google TV app store

Download the ABC13 Houston App

There is no login required

To watch on our Roku app:

Search "ABC13 Houston" in the Roku Streaming Store.

Download the ABC13 Houston app in the "apps" section.

There is no login required

To watch on Roku Channel:

Search "ABC13 Houston" in the Roku Channel app or on therokuchannel.roku.com

Click "add channel"

Start streaming!

To watch on Samsung TV:

Open the Samsung TV Plus app or press the Samsung TV Plus button on your remote

Channel 1122 is ABC13 Houston (available only in the Houston region)

Download our mobile app

Stay on top of the latest breaking news, weather, and traffic on your phone with the ABC13 Houston app. Get the top local headlines for the Houston area, as well as news from around the U.S. and the world.