I hope that newscasters are better informed about the advice they should give and that this tragedy is never repeated. Why not outlaw sky diving too? October 1, 2013 I can at least understand why news crews were in the vicinity, but they didn't really need to be there either. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. Samaras, a tornado scientist for over 25 years, founded and ran a scientific field research program dubbed TWISTEX (Tactical Weather Instrumented Sampling in Tornadoes EXperiment). Well before Oklahoma's first thunderstorms fired up at late afternoon, the Storm Prediction Center in Norman was already forecasting a violent evening. >>> What they're doing is seeking fame and fortune by selling their videos to various websites and television stations. It's even worse if you are an amateur tornado chasing on your own--at least the tour groups have an experienced person to warn them that the tornado is coming straight at them and they need to hit the dirt NOW! That's why safety experts say you need a plan. Driving away several hours ahead of time is one thing, but this guy was telling people to drive at the same time he was saying the tornado was impending! But before their stalking of the dangerous vortex turned deadly, their cries could be heard by Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Betsy Randolph. Samaras submitted this footage to National Geographic in the weeks leading up to his death,. Inside was Tim Samaras, one of the country's most respected tornado scientists, who had built his career by placing sophisticated probes in the paths of oncoming tornadoes. How three storm chasers died, and what to do about it 'It was chaos Everybody was running for their lives,' Terri Black, who lives in Moore, said. And we cannot "go to the sun" or other planets where it's abundant and "scoop it up and bring it back to earth". Probably many thing contributed to what happened. Waiting: Oklahoma City's Will Rogers World Airport was evacuated. The last people out will be stuck in traffic. But Fridays massive tornado avoided the highly populated areas near and around Oklahoma City, and forecasters said that likely saved lives. You are absolutely right, that this tornado was a particularly monstrous one. Any house would have been completely swept clean on the foundation. (Football, Lacross, Motorcycle, Bicycle etc). Privacy statement. 'We're never going to know, because they're not here to tell us,' Mr West told The Post. Joel Taylor Dies: What Is Stormchasers? - Peoplemag 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. It is not inforceable. In fact, while writing this post I wondered what the three scientists were thinking as their car, and other cars, were hemmed in with a traffic jam that seems to have been caused by inappropriate reactions by a large number of people. There are places in this country that I have almost no tornados This law would only allow people who "***work***" for the government to be there. Police/authority do have the power to stop vehicles/storm chasers from continuing down a road if there is an immanent threat. 'It was chaos. This was the case with Mt. (MORE: Reaction from Dr. Jeff Masters of Weather Underground). 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They were caught off guard not by traffic, but by an extremely powerful and erratic multi vortex tornado that grew from a mile wide multivortex into a 2.5 miles in diameter behemoth as it also accelerated and turned north toward the ill fated chasers. Their car was found. Contributions are fully tax-deductible. Watch: Tim Samaras - News - IMDb Storm Chaser Timmer Reflects on Deadly Tornado But telling everyone to leave their homes and drive is not advised, if that is actually what the newscaster did. 'Tim was not a cowboy, he was as cautious as possible about his approach to studying these dangerous storms.'. The Oklahoma City metro district has about 1.3 million people. - Toxicology results have revealed the cause of death of a well-known storm chaser. The authors are Joshua Wurman, Karen Kosiba and Paul Robinson with the Center for Severe Weather Research, and Timothy Marshall of Haag Engineering, a damage-path surveyor from Flower Mound whom I interviewed for our cover story on the tornado. North Atlantic hurricanes sometimes do unexpected things as well, such as acquire a forward speed of nearly 100 km/h (the 1938 "Long Island Express" hurricane) or cross Florida twice (I'm forgetting which of the hurricanes in the last ten years did this). Three veteran storm chasers were among the 10 people killed following Friday's EF3 tornado in El Reno, Okla. On Tuesday, Storm Chasers star Joel Taylor died at 38. But, since we (we here discussing this) don't really know the laws and how they work regarding emergency response, traffic, etc. It isn't just the clouds that appear smooth, but aren't if you zoom in close. This spring's tornado season got a late start, with unusually cool weather keeping funnel clouds at bay until mid-May. Public safety workers already enjoy wide latitude in the execution of their jobs. I agree that telling people that the safest thing to do is to get in their car and drive is wrong. This advice sounds reasonable, but it really isnt. and help keep the future of the Observer, Use of this website constitutes acceptance of our, Dallas Observer's The Morning After Brunch, The Last Ride of Legendary Storm Chaser Tim Samaras. Since then, multiple versions of what happened have been claimed, and as far as I can tell, all of that is laid out in the various comments on this thread. .". >>> I support this 100%. Eco-friendly burial alternatives, explained. I have a feeling that Scienceblogs will not last long without me. What this weather forecaster just did was to advice a couple/few tens of thousands of people in the path of a tornado to get in their cars and drive in the same direction. I dont think there has been a single case (correct me if im wrong) of external injury or property damage due to a chasers car getting picked up by a tornado. Washington, DC: National Geographic. There's no wiggle room. Here's a new law we can make: Whenever there is an emotional tragedy, no laws related to it can be made for at least 5 years. The violent winds enveloped Tim Samaras, 55, his son Paul Samaras, 24, and his colleague Carl Young, 45, toppling their car like a toy in a breeze. Three experienced tornado chasers actual meteorological scientists were killed when their truck (one of the vehicles depicted above, probably) was destroyed by the tornado. Basically the idea here is that if you can avoid a direct hit to the head by the helmet taking the beating your more likley to survive. Samaras was killed along with his son Paul and storm chaser Carl Young in Friday's tornado in El Reno, Oklahoma. 2) "But the hundreds, or even thousands of non-professional storm chasers are probably not contributing to the science of tornadoes and tornado safety." I think the only way to deal with these weeks-long tornado outbreaks is to build high-quality shelters in every community and make sure people know where they are. I remember my wife telling me a few years ago about her retail stores tornado policy which was contrary to everything I knew about safety during a storm. Skip Talbot did an excellent analysis and can easily be found on youtube. Oklahoma City has a similar population level to Cairns and Brisbane. I'll take my chances sheltering in place, thank you. The family sheltered from the storm in a hospital parking garage. 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. Tim Samaras dies: Tragic last words of father-and-son storm chasers Of the 60 EF5 tornadoes to hit since 1950, Oklahoma and Alabama have been hit the most - seven times each. Or was it a rotating thunderstorm (a supercell) with small- to moderate-sized tornadoes swirling about one another? 'Some tornadoes are wrapped in rain, so it's basically impossible to see, which is extremely dangerous,' said Bruce Thoren, a meteorologist with National Weather Service in Norman. So, that apparent fact was part of the underpinning of the original post (below). One thing that makes tornadoes so dangerous is the speed at which they hit. They never follow the same track. William Wehrum is a lawyer and once, apparently, worked for the EPA. The Friday storm, however, brought with it much more severe flooding. They all unfortunately passed away but doing what they loved.'. Or, amateurs could get to a good viewing area well ahead of anticipated severe weather, and then stay put and off the road. I would say to such folks the same thing a fire chief would say to people who are not trained, qualified, or equipped to study burning office buildings but feel that somehow being close to one would help them provide insights about fire safety: "Move along, you're not helping but just getting in the way here. How a zoo break-in changed the life of an owl called Flaco, Naked mole rats are fertile until they die, study finds. I dont think the scientists who died in this storm would agree with you on that. Police have a hard enough time now dealing with emergencies, the last thing they have time to do is stop to write tickets. It truly is sad that we lost my great brother Tim and his great son, Paul. 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. There is only so much space to get away and so many roads to use, many in poor repair. Samaras shows probes he uses to measure. It may be only a matter of seconds before you have time to find shelter. We cannot separate it from other compounds on earth (like we can, say, hydrogen), we cannot combine other elements to manufacture it (like we can, say, gasoline). Since I wrote this post, I've received many emails telling me that the premise is wrong, that traffic from too many storm chases did not contribute to the death of Samaras and others. We need sensors in place, in advance of the storms. Lucky escape: A meteorologist from The Weather Channel was injured after his car (seen here) was thrown 200 yards by the storm, Waterway: A man uses a jetski to travel between his home and Osage City, after Missouri was affected by severe flooding, Storm damage: Navy veterans inspect the washed out road where they pulled a woman and her daughter to safety after their car flooded, A family in El Reno, Oklahoma inspect what is left of their home after Friday night's tornadoes battered the local area, Rain: Parts of Oklahoma City experience extreme flooding after multiple tornadoes passed through Central Oklahoma, For more videos, please go to the Long Center Austin.