Storm Chasing and it's risk

Discuss current and upcoming weather events here.

Moderators: freebrickproductions, mlgillson, TommyBNSF, Raco_GS

Post Reply
User avatar
TheSignalMan2000
Posts: 193
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2012 7:46 am
Location: Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Contact:

Storm Chasing and it's risk

Post by TheSignalMan2000 » Mon Jun 03, 2013 11:40 pm

Let me tell you, as a storm chaser, I can certainly say that it isn't all peaches and cream, it takes a lot of experience to know what you're doing (even though I have 4 years of experience), but even experienced people could get into major trouble.
Take for example that 3 legendary storm chasers (Tim Samaras, Paul Samaras, and Carl Young) all got killed by an EF-5 tornado that hit El Reno, Oklahoma.

This is pretty much why storm chasing is an extremely dangerous thing anyone can do because even experience people can get killed by them, because one fatal mistake can cause injury or death, like what happen to those 3. For me, I'm still going to storm chase (because it being hurricane season and all that), but I can say in person this is an extreme message to all storm chasers all over the world that even experience chasers are in dangers of being killed.
Last edited by TheSignalMan2000 on Sat Jun 08, 2013 6:12 pm, edited 1 time in total.
ImageImageImage
The crossing photographer of Louisiana, Mississippi, & East Texas


My YouTube account: http://www.youtube.com/user/TheSignalman2000/
My Flickr account: https://www.flickr.com/photos/158425094@N07/
User avatar
AndyWS
Posts: 870
Joined: Thu Feb 05, 2009 12:51 am
Location: Madison, WI
Contact:

Re: Storm Chasing and it's risk

Post by AndyWS » Mon Jun 03, 2013 11:58 pm

Tim Samaras was widely known and respected as one of the safe, responsible chasers, so if it can happen to him (first direct tornado-related deaths in 4 decades of scientific and hobbyist storm chasing), it can happen to anyone. Like many other hobbies (rock climbing, piloting small aircraft, etc) there is risk involved and mistakes and/or accidents can happen even to the best.

Mike Bettis of The Weather Channel and everyone else in his vehicle were also caught up by this tornado and are extremely lucky to be alive. Many more people in Oklahoma City are lucky to be alive after they ventured out the gridlocked roads trying to escape the tornado, fortunately the storm did not maintain a strong (EF2/3) to violent (EF4/5) tornado on the ground as it moved into the city itself. Instead, it continued to form new cells over the city for hours upon hours, causing flash flooding that swept a few people who had gone into ditches to escape the (at that point non-existent) strong tornado to their deaths.

http://www.stormtrack.org/forum/showthr ... Carl-Young
User avatar
TheSignalMan2000
Posts: 193
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2012 7:46 am
Location: Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Contact:

Re: Storm Chasing and it's risk

Post by TheSignalMan2000 » Tue Jun 04, 2013 12:03 am

AndyWS wrote:Tim Samaras was widely known and respected as one of the safe, responsible chasers, so if it can happen to him (first direct tornado-related deaths in 4 decades of scientific and hobbyist storm chasing), it can happen to anyone. Like many other hobbies (rock climbing, piloting small aircraft, etc) there is risk involved and mistakes and/or accidents can happen even to the best.

Mike Bettis of The Weather Channel and everyone else in his vehicle were also caught up by this tornado and are extremely lucky to be alive. Many more people in Oklahoma City are lucky to be alive after they ventured out the gridlocked roads trying to escape the tornado, fortunately the storm did not maintain a strong (EF2/3) to violent (EF4/5) tornado on the ground as it moved into the city itself. Instead, it continued to form new cells over the city for hours upon hours, causing flash flooding that swept a few people who had gone into ditches to escape the (at that point non-existent) strong tornado to their deaths.

http://www.stormtrack.org/forum/showthr ... Carl-Young
Yeah, I have heard about that.
ImageImageImage
The crossing photographer of Louisiana, Mississippi, & East Texas


My YouTube account: http://www.youtube.com/user/TheSignalman2000/
My Flickr account: https://www.flickr.com/photos/158425094@N07/
User avatar
LARDLOGO
Posts: 844
Joined: Thu May 24, 2012 8:51 pm
Location: Sumas, Washington

Re: Storm Chasing and it's risk

Post by LARDLOGO » Sat Jun 08, 2013 1:38 am

It does take risks and if I lived in the south, I would be doing it all the time.
Railfanning since December 28, 2009!
User avatar
TheSignalMan2000
Posts: 193
Joined: Wed Aug 15, 2012 7:46 am
Location: Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Contact:

Re: Storm Chasing and it's risk

Post by TheSignalMan2000 » Sat Jun 08, 2013 6:12 pm

LARDLOGO wrote:It does take risks and if I lived in the south, I would be doing it all the time.
Yeah, The South does have quite a lot to see for chasers, you have tornadoes between November & February and also, you got Hurricanes between June & November.
ImageImageImage
The crossing photographer of Louisiana, Mississippi, & East Texas


My YouTube account: http://www.youtube.com/user/TheSignalman2000/
My Flickr account: https://www.flickr.com/photos/158425094@N07/
User avatar
UnionPacific4Life
Posts: 180
Joined: Sat Sep 08, 2018 7:05 pm
Location: St Louis, MO

Re: Storm Chasing and it's risk

Post by UnionPacific4Life » Tue Sep 03, 2019 1:21 pm

AndyWS wrote:
Mon Jun 03, 2013 11:58 pm
Like many other hobbies (rock climbing, piloting small aircraft, etc) there is risk involved
Truly. Also applies to railfanning. I’ve seen many a person run across a track with a train seconds away.
Proud owner of a Safetran 3rd Gen M-Bell, a GS Type 2 bell, a dead GS type 1 bell, a WRRS M-bell, and a US&S H-2 searchlight signal.
Why does everyone copy my signature?

OG signal collection signature, I think. :LOL2:
Post Reply