Anchor Who Appeared Disheveled on TV Following the Death of Her Dad Says, 'I Just Hope People Will Understand'

Heather Kovar had informed the TV station that she would not be renewing her contract prior to Saturday's broadcast

A TV anchor in Albany, New York appeared disheveled and confused during a live broadcast over the weekend, and has since left the job and is hoping to move past the incident.

Emmy-winning reporter and anchor Heather Kovar previously said in a statement that she had worked a double shift and was "sleep-deprived and exhausted" following her return from family leave after the death of her father.

Kovar told PEOPLE this week that "it has been an exhausting time using my time off to fly to family in between shifts."

She continued, "I was hoping to create a better situation. I just hope people will understand as I move forward in what is next."

While anchoring for CBS affiliate WRGB Saturday night, Kovar struggled to make it through the segment. She appeared to stammer when reading a script on excessive heat in Texas and later misidentified one of her colleagues.

Heather Kovar. Heather Kovar Instagram

At another point in the broadcast, Kovar began explaining the news of a shooting in Ohio by saying "We have to tell you, also, you know, like the other news that's happening in the area and across the, you know, the area and the nation. A four… let me tell you about this… a four-year-old girl is actually dead, another man is clinging to life after a shooting in Ohio."

Kovar said on air that she had worked a double shift that day — a claim she also tweeted on Saturday morning.

"It's another marathon weekend!" she wrote. "See you now 6-8am. Then at 6 and 11. And I'll be back Sunday morning from 7-9am then 6:30 pm and 11pm."

In a statement provided both to NBC News and the Times Union, Kovar provided more context about what had been going on behind the scenes.

"I recently returned early from family leave following my dad's death," Kovar wrote in her statement. "On Friday, I notified the station I would not be renewing my contract which expires July 31. Saturday I was scheduled to work the early morning 6 a.m. shift and the evening shift. I was sleep-deprived and exhausted."

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Kovar told PEOPLE that because she had notified the station prior to Saturday's incident that she would not be renewing her contract, "the situation has been amicably handled with the station."