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Television images showed downed power lines and tossed cars as the storm systems dumped at least three inches of rain, stranding motorists in flood water. 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. Your analogy regarding the burning building is wrong as well. Meteorologist Mike Bette is nursing minor injuries after his 'tornado hunt' car was thrown some 200 yards by the storm. 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. Probably many thing contributed to what happened. Contrast that, as bad as it was, with Dan Robinson's video from the El Reno, OK tornado that killed Tim Samaras, his son Paul and his long-time chase partner Carl Young. In this country, if a cyclone alert is issued, all roads are closed. Joel Taylor starred . I have lived in the Oklahoma City area for 37 years and have been professionally chasing storms for the last 18 years. Unauthorized use is prohibited. Saying "Stay out of moore" wold just turn the would-be chasers in another direction that a storm or twister could emerge from. So, regarding the question of traffic: first, I know. Missouri and Illinois around St. Louis were also hit by 12 tornadoes, at least 100 people are injured and 'numerous homes' have been damaged. tornado disbursement tactical teams should be flown in by helicopter and then flown out after the job is done, its much safer this way. This, in turn, would require storm chasers to make their case that they are professionals that are doing something worthwhile, and that they take appropriate action related to their own safety and the safety of others. And we're wasting it on stupid, silly things like party balloons. Early aerial images of the storm's damage showed groups of homes with porches ripped away, roofs torn off and piles of splintered wood scattered across the ground for blocks. 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. It encouraged all, including the media and amateurs, to chase safely to avoid a repeat of Friday's deaths. Apply that technology to license plates instead of faces. I have stood up for professional storm chasers in this post. 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. Finally do what we did in California for earthquakes. Im not sure how many people actually got in their cars and drove south. We do know, however, that the highways in the area became jammed with cars, and the vicinity around the intersection of I35 and I40 was described as a parking lot. One thing we do know is that many people who drove south to get away from the tornado in fact drove directly into its path, created a traffic jam, and most of the deaths associated with this tornado were among those people in those cars. Also, hurricanes tend to follow predictable paths and show up on sattelite. But, since we (we here discussing this) don't really know the laws and how they work regarding emergency response, traffic, etc. I know cyclones are slightly more predictable than tornados (but much less predictable than hurricanes) they also have the habit of suddenly randomly changing direction. Pete, Born: I think this is a difficult question. They didn't happen to be overrun by a killer tornado at the time. Big blue trash cans were being tossed around like a piece of paper in the wind. 'Tim was not a cowboy, he was as cautious as possible about his approach to studying these dangerous storms.'. When does spring start? At the end of the day, he wanted to save lives and he gave the ultimate sacrifice for that," Jim Samaras said. I live in a rural town in southern West Virginia, however we are no strangers to tornadoes in 2001 a tornado ripped several close friends houses to shreds and they were only saved by using the old bath tub trick. There is a great irony to the deaths of the three storm chasers from Twistex. If you live there, there should be no excuseyour life depends on your knowledge. Jeff also included a video from a different storm chaser who, by his own admission, was too close, and whose escape (along with his partner, who was driving) was delayed by something like half a minute by other storm chasers getting out of Dodge. But telling everyone to leave their homes and drive is not advised, if that is actually what the newscaster did. If you were turned away from Main Street due to a fire, and instead took Elm, would the state be responsible when a fire spontaneously breaks out on Elm as well and sprays glass on you? Oklahoma County sheriff's office has identified the victim as James Talbert, according to NewsOk. Samaras was born November 12, 1957 in Lakewood, Colorado, to Paul T. and Margaret L. Samaras. Public safety officials have the right and responsibility to restrict access to Main Street and areas nearby in order to save lives and property. He was killed because an unusual and unprecedented tornado acted in an unpredictable manor and sadly cost him, his son, and chase partner their lives. Gone. Regarding the rest of your comment. Tim Samaras sits with instrument probes he used as part of his TWISTEX field research program. That is not my argument either, it is simply what all the experts say. And, as I think I've said several time, Tim and his crew were professionals, making an important contribution. Laws are really challenging to enforce. Can we bring a species back from the brink?, Video Story, Copyright 1996-2015 National Geographic Society, Copyright 2015-2023 National Geographic Partners, LLC. It almost stopped, then went East. would have made the storm hard to recognize up close. Long story short, I and many others took cover in the hotel bathroom as the tornado headed straight toward us (to hit at 7:05). Were all the people blocking the road amateur chasers? We have many many laws that are more or less unenforceable. Often scores, even hundreds of chasers would converge on the same cell by late afternoon. The cause of his death remains unclear at this time, but several of his friends shared the sad news on social media, commemorating the. Though the tornado alert expired, the powerful rain continued to hit the area and floodwaters were collecting in the streets. Interestingly motorcycle helmets are cheaper than football helmets due to liability reasons. Oklahoma schools are not properly educated on how to shelter children. Standing water was several feet deep, and in some places it looked more like a hurricane had passed through than a tornado. Photo by George Johnson. That is the speed at which they rotated around the tornado, not their recorded windspeed. He gave direction to leave if in the path. I'm reminded of Grand Island, NE in 1980, when the tornadoes defied everything we supposedly know about them. I hold a degree in atmospheric and oceanic sciences. The worry soon turned to flash flooding and floodwaters topped four feet in Oklahoma City on Saturday morning. This was one of the highways that really did have a traffic jam thanks to the TV people who encouraged locals to attempt to flee in their cars. 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. ", Copyright 1996-2015 National Geographic SocietyCopyright 2015-2023 National Geographic Partners, LLC. Rather, his team would predict the path and drop machines on the ground designed to directly measure variables such as temperature, humidity, wind and so on, but with the team and their vehicles getting out of the way before the tornado comes. Also my brother was forced to move to Oklahoma for a job just last week only days after the tornado in this article struck Oklahoma city. Tim Samaras, 55, was found dead still belted into the mangled wreck, while the bodies of his son, 24, and Young, 45, were flung a quarter-mile away in opposite directions. At the time that Samaras, his son, and his colleague, were crushed to death inside their tornado-chasing car, which was apparently rolled by the force of 200-300 mile an hour winds over a. I also heard mention of a storm chaser who, attempting a U-turn to avoid a flooded stretch of road, went off a hidden embankment and was lucky to avoid drowning. It seems to me that we should be collecting equivalent data from storms that do and storms that do not drop tornadoes, because, after all, one of the things we want to know more about is the difference between those two types of storms. This report indicates he's more right than he could have known. Mr West guessed the experienced storm chasers were attempting to parallel the storm on the county road and it either changed course or another vortex appeared. I agree, Chris, that the specific suggestion that I made in the post that existing protocol should allow emergency personnel to keep roads clear. 'I'm a seasoned tornado watcher but I just could not see staying and waiting for it to hit,' she said. A new book chronicles his harrowing last days Maya Wei-Haas April 4, 2018 The tornado that touched down near El. 'Mile Wide Tornado' originally aired Sunday and focuses on the May 20 tornado that devastated a wide swatch of Oklahoma. You can also shop using Amazon Smile and though you pay nothing more we get a tiny something. The reason that is bad advice is very simple. I don't think the scientists who died in this storm would agree with you on that. And again. I was in Warr Acres, just next to Bethany in OKC on Fri. May 31. This advice sounds reasonable, but it really isnt. The other victims' bodies were found half a mile to the east and half a mile to the west, Canadian County under-sheriff Chris West said. I'll take my chances sheltering in place, thank you. All rights reserved. 'It was chaos Everybody was running for their lives,' Terri Black, who lives in Moore, said. But before their stalking of the dangerous vortex turned deadly, their cries could be heard by Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Betsy Randolph. Their car was found upright in a ditch with its wheels blown off and the engine a quarter-mile away. Timothy Michael Samaras (November 12, 1957 May 31, 2013) was an American engineer and storm chaser best known for his field research on tornadoes and time on the Discovery Channel show, Storm Chasers. During the United States tornado season, it seems that we experience repeated tornadoes and other severe storms in a given area over several days. In reply to by Tom McDonald (not verified). Our community has suffered a terrible loss and our thoughts and prayers are with their loved ones. The men spent years capturing and sharing storm videos with TV viewers and weather researchers. It would have taken out everything. 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. So, lets go back to the advice again. If you are worried about the roads being clogged during a tornado then don't drive or don't live in tornado alley. The family sheltered from the storm in a hospital parking garage. I've had several police hop in my car to look at radar and ask for opinions while chasing because they are not equipt with it. But I'll just say that I think there are less extreme solutions than putting a ban on all amateur storm chasing. Troopers requested a number of ambulances at I-40 near Yukon, west of Oklahoma City. I've had grown adults that have lived in Oklahoma their entire lives ask me what the difference between a tornado watch and a tornado warning is. The police can close off that street and nearby streets and as annoying or inconvenient as that may be, they are not taking away your rights. For example, the requirement to hold a permit to chase could be limited within a certain radius of a city or residential area, where congestion is more likely to create a danger to public safety. "This is a very sad day for the meteorological community and the families of our friends lost. One simple idea was to have either a hard hat or some sort of hard shell helmet to wear. I don't think anyone's rights need to be taken away Too many people clogging the roads in a chase situation makes it difficult for anyone to get away when a storm turns on them. The rain was coming down horizontally in front of my car.'. In Canadian County, Okla., where the men died, Undersheriff Chris West noted the three were hoping to help understand violent storms. Caught in the midst of the gigantic storm was a group of storm chasers who had nowhere to hide. Oklahoma City has a similar population level to Cairns and Brisbane. On the other hand, if you calculate its width by how much debris was lofted into the air, we may be talking about a mile and a quarter to nearly two miles in width. What do you think? Flash flooding accounted for some of the deaths, such as that of a 65-year-old man who died on Saturday when his car drove off a damaged bridge in eastern Oklahoma County. More than half of those were people who had been cut or pierced. I don't think so! They never follow the same track. 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. That seems to be what happened here. The forecast quality will always be better than for small-scale phenomena like tornadoes. 'Use a telephoto lens for gosh sakes. An image taken from video shows the vehicle that longtime storm chaser Tim Samaras, his son Paul and colleague Carl Young were killed when a powerful tornado hit near El Reno, Okla. on May 31. It is not inforceable. I'll never do it again.'. His video consisted of really high quality camera work of weather and the focus wasn't on him. Like wadded up,' he told the Washington Post. Helium is a precious, non-renewable resource. I started driving on the shoulder. Having a law about something means that society wants certain things to happen or not happen. I have a feeling that Scienceblogs will not last long without me. Tim Samaras, his son Paul and colleague Carl Young died Friday night when an EF3 tornado with winds up to 165 mph turned on them near El Reno, Okla. After years of sharing dramatic videos with. But volcanoes usually give fair warning that an eruption is likely to occur in the next several weeks, and in most cases (at least in First World countries) authorities can control the few access routes to the volcano. Local news reported an estimated 1,200 people were at the airport. His graduation was at Alameda International High School in 1976. 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. These things will always be unpredicable and its good to hid under the basement steps! But that is not a reason to not have the laws. 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. That sort of delay could have been the difference between the Samaras team escaping and being caught in the tornado. And, just like a tornado, the last place you want to be caught in a fire is in your car. Enough said. from a major non profit, click through the the X Blog to read the press release. Most new laws seem to be rehashes of existing laws that can be adapted. The bodies of another motorist and the Discovery Channel storm chasers, Tim Samaras, his son Paul, and Carl Young, were found in a three-mile diagonal path near N.W. How did Matt die in Storm Chasers? 'What got me scared was being stuck in traffic with sirens going off,' she said. 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. Many still believe mountains and rivers save towns. He had a road map spread across the kitchen table! I'm not sure about your claim that there was not a traffic jam, that conflicts with everything else I've heard. In fact, we probably need more professional storm chasers, and among storm chasers my feeling is that we need a better more comprehensive research design. I assume those are passed to make legislators feel good about their jobs. For example, a highly irresponsible storm chaser endangers an innocent bystander, then that danger comes to fruition. Hail and high winds were the chief threat, though a tornado could not be ruled out, forecasters said. Tim Samaras was a pioneer and great man," he wrote. Sometimes, a mismatch indicates the need for something new, like a new planet or a, "A cloud is made of billows upon billows upon billows that look like clouds. I think it's an abomination that news forecasters suggested people drive away that temporally close to a suspected tornado touchdown. Specious arguments at best. [sic] I look at it that he is in the 'big tornado in the sky'. They all unfortunately passed away but doing what they LOVED. How did this mountain lion reach an uninhabited island? The EF5 storm that hit Moore decimated neighborhoods. Samaras was killed along with his son Paul and storm chaser Carl Young in Friday's tornado in El Reno, Oklahoma.

An engineer by training, Samaras was known for devising instruments that offered the first views inside live tornadoes. I am stunned that that any forecaster indicated people should drive anywhere after 5pm that day. "He was a groundbreaker in terms of the kind of research he was doing on severe thunderstorms and tornadoes," Dr. Forbes said on The Weather Channel Sunday morning. The Friday storm, however, brought with it much more severe flooding. He was best known for being a Meteorologist. 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. And now So, that apparent fact was part of the underpinning of the original post (below). Your freedom ends at my nose if your presence endangers me. Even if the people who are at risk of vehicular projectiles are innocent bystanders, chances are they're at more risk from the tornado than the cars in them. If you want to make this about Tim Samaras, how about you contact his family, colleagues, or friends and ask them what he would have wanted. It gets logistically harder to do this if the affected area includes Cairns or Brisbane, because if you are evacuating people from low-lying areas you have to leave the roads open long enough for them to get out. 'The fact that it could happen to someone like Tim, it could happen to me, it could happen to anybody. Tim shared data and results. Even if we could predict hours in advance that the storms would hit a particular county (and as you correctly point out, this is not true--there may be several distinct tornadoes in a single outbreak, so it's quite possible that Oklahoma City and Enid could both be hit the same day), this would not help in a major metro area like Oklahoma City. Police have a hard enough time now dealing with emergencies, the last thing they have time to do is stop to write tickets. The network said though Betts was hurt, he and the car's two other occupants were wearing safety belts and were able to walk away from the banged-up vehicle. Anyone can be wrong and that includes forcasters on tv, government and business emergency policies. A Carrollton High School Claims Employee Gave Student Prescription Drugs, Rep. Nate Schatzline, Under Fire for 'Drag' Video, Accused of 'Doxxing' Keller ISD Mom, Another Carrollton Fentanyl Arrest and an On-Campus Overdose at R.L. Shooting tournament: People search a field for guns near a destroyed RV at a state shooting tournament that was destroyed in El Reno, Weapons displaced: Shotguns recovered from a field lay against a overturned trailor at a state shooting tournament that was destroyed in El Reno, Devastation: When the storm passed between El Reno and Yukon, it barreled right down Interstate 40 for more than two miles, ripping billboards down to twisted metal frames. Five tornadoes battered the Oklahoma City area on Friday, while another tornado hit the Tulsa area early Saturday. I could not agree more with the statement in this article saying that driving away is not the best option. I realize you say in general terms such laws probably aren't enforceable and my question is then why make the laws? - IMDb Mini Biography By: Anonymous. The . 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! I've literally sat bumper to bumper with chasers on a five mile strech of road. They did not discuss the details but I would suspect you would want a helmet that comes down to the jaw line, which sort of eliminates a lot of bicycle helmets, although likely the bike helmet is better than a bare head. 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. Nine were confirmed dead in the Oklahoma City area on Friday evening, though the death toll has since risen, and flash floods in Arkansas caused additional fatalities, including a sheriff trying to rescue people from rising waters. Long COVID patients turn to unproven treatments, Why evenings can be harder on people with dementia, This disease often goes under-diagnosedunless youre white, This sacred site could be Georgias first national park, See glow-in-the-dark mushrooms in Brazils other rainforest, 9 things to know about Holi, Indias most colorful festival, Anyone can discover a fossil on this beach. Law enforcement in a tornado emergency already has immense priorities safeguarding the areas affected, treating the injured, rescues, ascertaining what equipment is needed, etc who would be pulled off those duties to chase down minor traffic violators? Don't create a law just to feel better because people died. I doubt it. Such a law or regulation could be more general, specifying that police have the authority to direct people generally in relation to emergency disaster zones that have not happened yet.