Debris: This aerial photo shows damage in the Rolling Meadow Estates neighborhood on Friday in Broken Arrow, Okla. after a tornado had passed the area, Dangerous: Forecasters warned of a 'particularly dangerous situation,' with ominous language about strong tornadoes and hail the size of grapefruits 4 inches in diameter. I have suggested that such a thing should be worth, at least, a parking ticket. After a large and violent tornado went through Moore Oklahoma a few days ago, several people in various media outlets including CNN mentioned that given the (seemingly enigmatic) lack of good shelter in homes and public buildings in Oklahoma, that a good option to protect yourself in case a tornado comes your way is to drive away. The Life and Death of Legendary Storm Chaser Tim Samaras Books The Man Who Caught the Storm Tim Samaras was a legendary storm chaser whose work informed what we know about tornadoes. - IMDb Mini Biography By: Anonymous. The Weather Channel's severe weather expert, Dr. Greg Forbes, knew Tim personally. I'm one state north from tornado alley, and I can't imagine anyone from my state saying that it's okay to drive during a tornado alert. Officials added five victims on Monday to the confirmed list of dead from the tornadoes and from storms that caused severe flooding: three adults and two unidentified children, the medical examiner's office said. We need sensors in place, in advance of the storms. But a law or explicit regulation, or even a well publicized set of best practices in the interest of public safety, might make the point that needs to be made, thus discouraging people from making decisions that endanger others. But seriously, I'll be talking about the story of the current, In every area of life, but especially in the overlapping realms of technology, science, and health, misunderstanding how things work can be widespread, and that misunderstanding can lead to problems. Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group. tornado disbursement tactical teams should be flown in by helicopter and then flown out after the job is done, its much safer this way. In closing it should be important to note that Tim and crew did not get killed because of the traffic that was present on that day. More than half of those were people who had been cut or pierced. CBS from Dallas agrees with Dorothy from KC and OL from OKC. Debris was tangled in the median's crossover barriers, including huge pieces of sheet metal, tree limbs, metal pipes, a giant oil drum and a stretch of chain-link fence. It isn't just the clouds that appear smooth, but aren't if you zoom in close. Myers said the man left for work early Saturday and his vehicle was found empty near East Hefner Road and Dobbs Road just after 6 a.m. 'His vehicle was found washed off the road,' Myers said. We have many many laws that are more or less unenforceable. A new book chronicles his harrowing last days Maya Wei-Haas April 4, 2018 The tornado that touched down near El. On the other hand, it means they are intentionally bringing civilians into the danger zone, and these civilians don't always know how to react if the situation gets out of hand. This is an . But that brings in another issue doesn't it? The boy and other family members had sought shelter in a drainage ditch. The point of this post is to note two things that I can't prove are relevant in this case but certainly are relevant generally. On one hand, there's a robust set of predictions for what the behavioral motion of these bodies ought to be, while on the other there's what we actually observe. -Benoit Mandelbrot An outright ban is prolly a bad idear too. Caught in the midst of the gigantic storm was a group of storm chasers who had nowhere to hide. But, I suspect I know why you proposed that idea. But the main circulation was crawling with smaller tornadoes, some moving at speeds of 260 feet per second (177 mph), according to the report. He skipped out on chasing the massive tornado that flattened Moore, Okla., because it was too dangerous. In 2013, Tim Samaras died in one of the epic storms he'd spent decades chasing. Fifty people took shelter in the freezer at a Sinclair gas station in south Oklahoma City. Tim Samaras - Wikipedia I can only assume that Tim Samaras had no intention of being in the path of the the tornado that killed him, his son, and his colleague, but was unable to get out of the way because of the traffic jam. Or was it a rotating thunderstorm (a supercell) with small- to moderate-sized tornadoes swirling about one another? But before their stalking of the dangerous vortex turned deadly, their cries could be heard by Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Betsy Randolph. Here's the before photo, of Mr. Samaras' car. In the future I will be blogging at Greg Laden's blog, located at its original home at gregladen.com. The result, even in dry, acronym-heavy academic language, manages to serve as both an enlightening and horrifying account of storm chasing's worst day. When the winds were at their most powerful, no structures were nearby, said Rick Smith, chief warning coordination meteorologist for the weather services office in Norman. BTW, here is Bart's Youtube channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/TheTornadoChaser. This story has been shared 160,448 times. There are many chasers who do stop to render aid and time and time again they are often the first to reach the victims in crucial first moments with skills to save lives. I can't imagine the trauma of living through a tornado strike. A 51-year-old teacher's assistant who also tried to run from the storm said she quickly regretted her decision, after becoming stuck in traffic in the path of the tornado. Samaras holds the Guinness World Record for the largest measured pressure drop inside a tornado. Salvaging: A chef at Gilmore's Kitchen at the OKC-West Stockyards, is framed by the kitchen pass-through window on the only kitchen wall still remaining as he checks tornado damage in El Reno, Childcare center: The devastation caused by Friday's storms included a wind turbine blade crashing into a daycare center, fortunately no children were inside, Remains: A man looks for items in what is left of a house in El Reno, Oklahoma on Saturday, Damage: A family inspect the office of what is left of the livestock auction business near El Reno, Oklahoma. He knew what to look for. You are absolutely right, that this tornado was a particularly monstrous one. Also, consider that there is huge debris in tornadoes regardless of whether or not some amateur gets caught in it. One more thing: at the point the tornado lifted, it was heading more or less directly eastward along I-40 (again, Jeff Masters is my source here). The Oklahoma State Department of Health reported on Saturday that Oklahoma City-area hospitals treated 104 people. The seasoned storm chaser had dedicated his life to extreme weather, following storms for a quarter of a century. I had spotty phone connection with my husband watching TV in Kansas City, and my sister watching from Edmond, OK. Just as it was coming toward us, it turned south. Saying "Stay out of moore" wold just turn the would-be chasers in another direction that a storm or twister could emerge from. Note the comments that 22% of the fatalities at Tuscalousa were head injuries and in general a majority of tornado fatalities where head injuries. Two other victims were found in a car in Union City, another was found on a road in El Reno. This is not about them, it is about their death, which at the time it happened, was claimed to have been caused by a traffic jam caused, in turn, by thrill seekers jamming the roads, and thrill seekers jamming the roads is a thing that happens. Just then the power went out and I heard what sounded like a freight train. Obviously it's hindsight now that Tim and his crew were not caught up in any traffic jam and in fact the opposite. He almost certainly didn't know that the rain-shrouded vortex was hooking toward him, to the northeast, and that he had entered its circulation. I've looked at video and have counted 458 people outside their vehicles in that small strech of road. Where victims found after monster May 31 tornado - KFOR.com Carl Young, a California native, joined Samaras in the field in 2003. It is not inforceable. Turner High School, Texas Bill Would Make Illegal Voting a Felony, City Council To Discuss Allowing Neighborhoods To 'Opt-In' for Short-Term Rentals in Dallas. I think that Tim Samaras knew what he was doing. In the area of voting, the main problem seems to be the expenditure of great amounts of outrage and, which I've posted on before there are new developments, summarized at Inside Climate News: He did not say "don't get in your car" and he did not say "a car is a bad place to be, and if you find yourself in a car do this and that" which is what he should have said. He knew where not to be and in this case the tornado took a clear turn toward them," he said. The Oklahoma City metro district has about 1.3 million people. I do not understand the need for 'storm chasers' when we have the 503 WRS that routinely punches holes in tornados and drops sondes. The tornado caught up with him and his crew and ended them. ', Danger: A series of violent storms and tornadoes have killed nine people as they swept through Oklahoma City and its suburbs on Friday, Damage: People survey the damage at the Canadian Valley Technology Center's El Reno Campus after it was hit by a powerful tornado on Friday, Crash: An airplane from the Aviation Technology department lies upside down on the lawn at Canadian Valley Technology Center in El Reno. The scale is based on observable destruction, and little was damaged as it tracked through the remote, relatively featureless farm country. Television cameras showed debris falling from the sky west of Oklahoma City and power transformers being knocked out by high winds across a wider area. He deployed one of these in the path of an F4 tornado that destroyed the small town of Manchester, S.D., on June 24, 2003. More than 100 people were injured by swirling debris, most with puncture wounds and lacerations, authorities said. News casters were telling people in the direct line of the tornado do drive south. But then the tornado made a turn and headed straight for the south that people were being told to drive to. Thankfully, I got out of it with just a few minor injuries and broken windows, but if a monster tornado happens people will not be as lucky as I was. All rights reserved. And, I've argued that telling people that the safest thing to do is to get in their car and drive is wrong. My humble opinions: I've been in a tornado, when I was six! I remember Pa wearing this Civil Defense helmet and he was chirping on this big ol' walky talky! Looking at where he was, I don't think evacuation traffic would have had much of an impact, if any. 'He was either washed off the road or tried to get out of his car. I suggest that law makers in tornado alley states consider legislation making it a violation to intentionally drive into or near the path of known or likely tornados. Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Betsy Randolph heard the panicked voices of the crew over her patrol radio right before the storm turned into their car. But let us not let the fact that Samaras and his crew were killed in a manner that did not relate to traffic obviate further consideration of the "drive to the fire" problem. It truly is sad that we lost my great brother Tim and his great son, Paul. It is not inforceable. 'There is very low visibility with the heavy rain so we're having trouble getting around. The one thing in your article I see that you failed to address is the number of chasers in the past that have been killed by the storm while chasing them. 10th St. and Radio Rd. So, that apparent fact was part of the underpinning of the original post (below). Of the mother and baby who were tragically killed, Betsy Randolph said: 'We know that the storm picked them up and swept them away.' They were essentially targets just waiting for a tornado to touch down,' Ms Randolph said.