photojournalist. During his year at the station, he began his investigation of the Tybee Bomb. The nuclear weapon was lost near Tybee Island, Georgia in the 1950s. With the help of amateur bomb hunters, Rea discovered documents that showed the weapon might still be dangerous, due to a small quantity of plutonium believed to be inside. These reports were rejected by the United States Department of Defense but the United States Air Force reopened the investigation, first in 2001 and again in 2005. Both recent investigations maintain the weapon is lost and no danger to the public. In the summer of 2000, Rea was attacked while covering a story in Coffee County, Georgia. The incident came to light in a November 2005 article on TV journalists in Georgia Trend magazine. The article, "Who's Who in TV News" by Jerry Grillo, ranked Rea as one of the top reporters in the state. Grillo wrote: <blockquote> Though Rea almost certainly is the only person on Georgia Trend'''s Who's Who list of TV news people to have taped his own beating, his experience defines the pluck and tenacity of the TV journalist. </blockquote>While the magazine claims Rea's camera was rolling during the attack, the footage was never broadcast. Rea returned to anchor, write and produce the morning show at WNEG-TV in 2001. He also produced the station's popular Georgia Journey segments, showcasing unique people and places in Northeast Georgia. Rea returned to WSAV-TV in 2003 to oversee the station's Community Report, covering neighborhood issues such as crime, blight, policing issues, and poverty in Savannah. Special reports include Counting Cops, in which he showed the Savannah Metropolitan Police Department was seriously understaffed, and Houses From Hell, which drew attention to some of the city's worst dilapidated houses. Rea left his position at WSAV-TV in 2008. In 2009 he began working as a Media and Messaging Consultant for government and corporate clients including the City of Savannah. He was a news reader on Fox News Radio 810 WYZI in Royston, Georgia from 2010 to 2014. On September 24, 2010, Rea debuted as the anchor of Newsnight on the Patriot'', on WRWR-LD channel 38.1 in Warner Robins, Georgia. but this position was temporary. Behind the scenes, Rea was tasked with developing all programming for the fledgling station. During the six months of the station's launch, Rea oversaw the development of four original local programs, including a