Chad Cowan
EF5
Can you post them here, or a link to them?
Another moron on Spotter Network
- Thread starter Chad Cowan
- Start date
Can you post them here, or a link to them?
I was on the same storm. Just directly north of it. I heard the same report and was on Highway 2 just SE of Lincoln. Only experienced pea sized hail at best. Didn't notice anything on GRlevel3.
joe.miller
HAHA, wow... yeah, I saw the report too and knew it was FUBAR...
Derek Heide
I had this almost happen to me last summer. I was chasing my area in Southern Manitoba and, what turned out to be nothing more than low level scud, I thought was significant rotation. I'm one of those who gets overly excited when storm chasing and it's something I'm working on getting better at. My studies over the year and reading this forum has given me a much better understanding of storms and features to look out for..
Jason Boggs
She hasn't gotten back with me yet. I doubt she will.
Tyler_Costantini
EF2
I know Erin, I don't know what the deal was. I will ask her I'm sure she didn't mean to cause any problem but the report was very odd.
Stan Rose
EF5
In a couple years, real-time video/photos from virtually every citizen on the streets will be ubiquitous, and this problem will go away...
beaudodson
EF5
Put them in the scary looking cloud club album
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/mkx/?n=scary-clouds
http://www.crh.noaa.gov/mkx/?n=scary-clouds
Darrin Rasberry
"satalite" vortices? lol, so much for a grad writing major.
When it comes to stupid reports, I can't really talk - I made a whopper myself during the first month I chased - but this is pretty obviously rain from the given photo. I'd have loved to have seen this from her angle, to her credit, but given the details of the other false report, I wonder if she isn't intentionally romanticizing her experiences.
When it comes to stupid reports, I can't really talk - I made a whopper myself during the first month I chased - but this is pretty obviously rain from the given photo. I'd have loved to have seen this from her angle, to her credit, but given the details of the other false report, I wonder if she isn't intentionally romanticizing her experiences.
Michael Towers
Supporter
I was situated in nearly the exact location of the reported wedge for the time it was reported to have happened on SN and can say with certainty that what the observer did see was much more convincing than the picture in the original post. A hail core was present on the western edge of the southern portion of north-south oriented storm. It was oval in shape and due to the angle of the sun, which back-lit the core, the entire shaft exhibited a luminescent appearance. It was one of the brightest hail cores I’ve seen and because of the back lighting it was fairly transparent at times as well. Storm motions gave horizontal movement to the feature. When I first saw the report I had a what the heck (insert stronger language) reaction but after reading the text referring to the tornado appearing glaciated I had a good idea what had happened. I’m not excusing the mistake but do believe it was not an intentional effort to file a false report. I can also say the mistake was not as blatantly obvious as the original photo posted would suggest. Regardless, I agree that errors like this are regrettable and measures need to be taken to ensure the credibility of future SN reports.
Chris Carter
EF3
If i remember correctly, those storms were somewhat linear that day, moving N or NW. At the time the tornado warning came out for that cell, there was another strong cell just south of it on its heels. I heard conflicting reports that there was a small funnel before being blocked out by heavy rain, but there was no reports of it touching down.
But this is the first I've heard of that cell having a wedge tornado or satellite tornadoes. Like I said, the only thing i heard was a small funnel cloud that never touchdowned.
But this is the first I've heard of that cell having a wedge tornado or satellite tornadoes. Like I said, the only thing i heard was a small funnel cloud that never touchdowned.
Erin Wheeler
A Moron's Rebuttal
Hello,
My name is Erin Wheeler – or, as I have more recently come to be known – the “moron†who sent in a report on the Nebraska storm on April 23rd 2010. I have been watching your comments pour in on this thread since the incident occurred, and I will try to address as many of your concerns as possible herein. For all of you who took the time to comment on this thread, I ask that you take the time, also, to read my rebuttal, as doing so seems only fair.
First, let me say that, following this event, my depression has been profound and asphyxiating – particularly due to some of the comments posted on this thread, which I’m sure is only a fraction of the inconceivably awful things being said of me among fellow chasers. It’s rather easy to lash out from behind the protective glare of a computer screen, but to all of you trolling the forum, I beg that you remember that I am indeed a person – a person with feelings – feelings which have been deeply hurt by the insensitivity the good lot of you have shown me. I ask that you all take that into consideration when commenting here, to my post or any other.
I know you have all decided that I am a moron. Maybe that’s true. Maybe I am moron. I am a moron who has a degree in philosophy, a moron who is now attending one of the top schools in the country from which I’ll receive a Masters degree next year. I am a moron who speaks three languages, a moron who learned ancient Latin for fun, a moron who has been studying particle physics and string theory since adolescence, who owns two observatory-quality telescopes (a 14 inch and an 8 inch) and enjoys astrophotography and photographing planetary nebulae during the non-stormy seasons of the year. I am a moron who knows the name of most every star and celestial object, and can point them out in the sky and name them by messier catalogue number. I am a moron who was published by the time she was 10. I am a moron who knows the Fibbinocci sequence by heart, who has 25 digits of pi memorized, and relaxes by reading the works of Hawkings, Einstein, or the literary and philosophy greats – Heidegger, Schopenhauer, Jonas, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Rilke, Pessoa, Proust…among others, of course. I am a moron who loves Biology, Astronomy, Entomology, Physics, Philosophy, and above all – above ALL – Meteorology. Yes, a moron I may well be – but if I fit the bill of an imbecile, by what standards do all of you judge yourselves? If I am a moron, I suspect I am in good company with the rest of you.
That being said, allow me to clarify the most important aspect of this fiasco: I DO NOT INTENTIONALLY ISSUE FALSE REPORTS. I would never do such a thing, and to be honest, I am hard pressed to imagine someone who could – what would possess someone to go out of their way to intentionally compromise the noble efforts of true storm spotters? What kind of monster must you all think me?
This is my fourth year officially chasing storms, and while I am far from a veteran as many of you are, I am not exactly the “newbie†you all have accused me of being. I wish I could consider myself so green in the field of meteorology – at least that would lend me some excuse for the mistake I apparently made that day. I have been studying meteorology since youth; when I was six, a tornado hit Texas and took the roof off my house. Fear first fueled my Metrologic endeavors, but now it is very much an unbridled passion that sends me to the storm-fraught plains each spring. Against the wishes of my professors and advisors, I left school this spring to return to Texas and chase the plains. Living with my parents in Texas makes me miss my apartment in NYC and my life back in the City, but there’s nothing that could keep me away from the spring-time storms with which I have fallen so desperately in love.
Now, on to the part you all actually want to read: I am a girl in a man’s field, chasing because I love it so dearly I cannot turn away from it even when I most want to (and as of now, please believe I’d like to run away from all of you and never show face in the field again) and I, Erin Wheeler, am guilty of making a mistake. Yes, despite how good I apparently look in a bikini, I am in-fact human, and prone to err. Have not all of you made a mistake in your long, experience-rich careers? If you have not once made a mistake – watch yourself – you’re overdue.
But on that note, it seems there is another topic here to address. Have we forgotten what we are all out there for? It seems to me, most of you (not ALL of you, of course, but most) are out there chasing tornados because you want to take the amazing photographs and videos that you can show off to your friends online the following day, or else you are selling your shots for quick cash to the nightly news shows, or perhaps you’re just another adrenaline junky who has yet to take up skydiving. But that’s not what we are supposed to be about. We are supposed to be about earlier warnings, about collecting data and performing science – but particularly about earlier warning times, so that lives might be spared from the raging tempests that all too often claim their victims before they have time to take shelter. If we continue on this way, making everyone so afraid to post what they see for fear it will irrevocably tarnish their reputation, we will maim these efforts considerably.
Already many people are afraid to post to spotter network – and I can see why. If everyone were to have to endure the repercussions I have suffered by the community's hand, for any one fault or error, then no one will have the ill-sense to make a report – even if it is certain and confirmed. Why would anyone risk having their reputation be so incorrigibly marred as mine has been, just to save some trailer park from the onset of an unwarned storm? We are setting ourselves up for failure if we continue on this way; some leniency is, in my humble opinion, much in order.
I have only reported 6 times – on SN or any other forum – in my entire 4 years of chasing. Only twice have I reported a tornado. One was on April 26th, 2009 of last year, in Sedgwick county, KS – that tornado was more than confirmed, and you can see my video of it traversing a long wheat field on YouTube. The second tornado I have reported was the one on April 23rd of this year – the one about which this thread is concerned. So if I were so carelessly making reports, would I not have reported many more rain-veils and land spouts since then? After all, I have chased nearly every storm the plains have offered for the past four years – from Texas nearly up to Canada and straight over to the Atlantic Coast. I am clearly choosey when it comes to what storm phenomena I report, albeit this one time, a flawed report.
Is it not, at least, a lesser-crime – if a crime, indeed it be named – to warn of rain-veil which one honestly believes to be a tornado and in-fact it is not, than to ignore what could be or become a tornado for fear you will be seen as a hack if it isn’t one? I make my case with the following recount: it was last year, and I was chasing with Tyler Constantini and Eric Burns. Night had nearly fallen and we were about to call it quits for the evening; we stationed our vehicles in a dirt conclave overlooking the Red River. Oklahoma sat visibly on the horizon, and we were watching what we believed to be a benign storm fall just across the river. I got out of the car, and Tyler and I stood at the bank of the river. The sunset had backlit the horizon in sheets of pale pink and yellow; black, racing blocks of low-hanging clouds were filing in along the land just across the water. It was a distant view at best, but something about it seemed more ominous than merely rain. As we watched it form, I could see that everyone around me was shifting nervously – but no one wanted to be the first to say it. God forbid they should be wrong, after all, as we can all see from my situation what kind of hellish-rebuke comes to those who inaccurately depict the weather. So, being the foolish girl I was and clearly am, I said it first – though I am sure the well-trained eyes of all who accompanied me thought it long before I did. I said, “I don’t think that’s rain – I think that’s forming a wedge tornado.†And Tyler looked at me – he’s such a good man – he said, “Call it in!†And Eric Burns proceeded to do so. To my knowledge, we were the first to call in that report. That time, I wasn’t wrong. That was the Lonegrove tornado. It was an EF4; It obliterated two towns.
I feel I need to also address the issue of the funnel cloud I reported in Texas, on April 22nd 2010. Here is the official report listing:
Erin Wheeler 2010-04-23 01:21:00 UTC (S) Funnel Spotter is 3 miles E of Coleyville, TX
You all criticize so harshly for jumping to conclusions – finding me guilty of doing so when reporting the NE cell – but for a group who so disdains hurried assumptions, you all are guilty by the same right. You should all take a closer look at yourselves, in this way. It says C O L E Y V I L L E – not Colleyville with 2 L’s. Google map it and you’ll see I was reporting on the SPC confirmed wedge tornado in Cottle, TX. The NWS actually took the time to call during that post to warn me that I was under a developing wedge tornado and it was imperative that I continue eastbound to escape, and I quote, “imminent dangerâ€. The official SPC storm report for 4/22/2010 at the time and location in question. Note my report was posted 0121 UTC:
0133 4 SSE CEE VEE COTTLE TX 3418 10041 SPOTTER REPORTS LARGE WEDGE TORNADO. SPOTTER IS 2 MILES WEST WNW OF CEE VEE (LUB)
Flagging my report in Texas could very well have had a grossly negative impact – thankfully I wasn’t the only one to post a report on that cell. I was flagged how many times – 9 I believe it was said – because 9 people misread the location that SN automatically assigned to my report. Take a moment to weigh the scenarios. My mistake in Nebraska might have inconvenienced a few people at worst. You who flagged my funnel cloud report in Texas made a mistake which could have cost the lives of countless people – because the report was sound! Still, you wouldn’t find me so quick to troll the forums, berating the “morons†who can’t read, the “hacks†who can’t be bothered to look up the location of my actual report but instead make ill-informed assumptions – I wouldn’t stoop to such a depraved, immoral low – because that’s not the way we ought to treat our colleagues and fellow chasers when they make a mistake. That’s not what this community is about. We are brethren, and we ought to show some mutual respect and understanding as such. It’s a science, after all – not a competition. As it is, it’s turning into a glorified pissing contest. We must rise above these menial tendencies, and become people of the caliber of which we claim ourselves to be. If I have to be made a mockery of, then so be it – I willingly submit to this foul gauntlet of harsh commentary, if only it can serve as means to expose and rectify this childish behavior, in which we’ve all engaged on these forums.
Furthermore, with regard to my report on the Texas cell on April 22nd 2010, I’d like to point out that – even though I first received a phone call from NWS, warning me of an encroaching wedge tornado with which I was all too close to intercepting, and even though I could see in the incandescence of waning light a visible funneling mass on the horizon as the hail core closed in on me, and even though my radar clearly displayed data that was confirmative to this effect – I still reported it as merely a Funnel Cloud, as I could not see for certain that it was making some contact with ground, and as I always strive to do, I aired on the side of caution, reporting it as Funnel Cloud instead of a Tornado, because we all know how much repercussion there is if one overzealously reports a tornado. It was a conservative report, and two others in my immediate vicinity reported the same occurrence as a tornado – and, indeed, it was. My point is, I do attempt to be conservative always – so my reports shouldn’t all be held in such harsh review. I am not one to over-report – I just made a mistake, one time, when I reported the cell in NE the following day. But the cell in Texas for which I reported a Funnel Cloud was by no means flawed, or false, or inaccurate. It was a confirmed tornado, and I conservatively called it a Funnel Cloud. Anyone who has further qualms about the Texas tornado needs to check their facts before they run their mouths. God forbid anyone should make an idiot of themselves on these forums.
Also, I must say I’m a little – creeped out – for lack of better phrasing, that so many of you googled me, read through my blog, my facebook page – trying to dig up some dirt on me with which you might further you endeavors to mock and taunt me. It’s perverse, and worrisome. I had expected more from all of you. That being said, credit is due to those who berated this behavior, who would take no part in the backlash I’ve suffered. Thank you Jason Persoff, for being the sound voice of reason and moral obligation. You are a lovely person, it would seem, and one of the few I’d let see me in a bikini. All jokes aside, though – the sexist remarks don’t make it any easier for a young girl to infiltrate this male-dominated field. I know that most of you men care little about this, but at least you wouldn’t want to be known as a group of archaically-misogynist cads – and that’s precisely the reputation some of your commentary has merited. Also, thank you Hank Baker, Joey Ketcham, Scott Olson – and of course, thank you to my dear friends (though I hope I am not tainting their reputation by associating them with me, and forgive the fact that they know me, please) Andy Gabrielson and Tyler Constantini, who have come to my aid in the ordeal, being my voice on these forums when I hadn’t yet mustered the strength to offer some meek rebuttal in my own defense. As blame is due, thanks is due. The names mentioned above ought not read this post and think that I am referring to them when I discuss the immoral nature of the inexcusably childish and cruel commentary that makes up the majority of this thread. They stand above, and ought to be named as such. Please forgive me if I have failed to mention someone who has also been kind or reasonable, or at least gentle – I have not left you out intentionally.
Lastly, since you all have shown such interest in my background, allow me to make a correction: I am not currently pursuing an MFA in FICTION – although, some of you seemed to like the idea that I was, as it lends me to even less credibility, somehow – I am receiving my MFA in NONFICTION, meaning I am not accustom to fabricating details, but instead, reporting the facts to the best of my subjective perception, and whatever truth can be found therein. This holds true for storm reporting, and for my writing endeavors in general. I know that some of you have a problem with the syntax and style of my writing when reporting weather phenomena, and to this end, I have but one refute: Several of you made very valid points when it comes to using jargon in reports – you all maintained that it should only be used if one can use it accurately, and though I believe I am well-versed in meteorologic-speak I do not fancy myself an expert to the degree that I can only phrase a description using those terms, as one might be if they had received copious amounts of formal education in the field, which would needless-to-say demand it of them. I write the reports the way I do because I do not wish to muddy a description with even plausibly-misinformed terms or jargon words. I write them the way that I write naturally, simply because I feel it upholds the sanctity of my perception in the best way possible. If you find some flaw with my ability to report because I do not always use your clever science semantics, then I’d say your reaching far to find some flaw with me, and I would then ask, why? What have I done to merit such distaste from so many of you? I love what you love, and I aim to learn more every day. What fault can be found there?
Quickly, let me also disband the rumor that I called in to some weather station, as Darren Stephens suggested (post number 30) – I have NEVER called in a report, only reported via computer on SN, and I’ve only done that 6 times in my entire career. I wouldn’t even know how to call a weather channel, nor would I think to do so while in the throes of a developing storm. I report to warn spotters and to increase the chances of earlier warning times for surrounding communities. That’s the only glory I seek in this game. If there’s some other fame to be had, by calling in and chatting up weather stations, be assured I want none of it.
Also, I did not – as someone implied – Google my SN quiz; I made a 90/100, all on my own. I now have to take it again, which is fine with me. Some faith in me would be appreciated. Some faith, I believe, is merited to those who share your love, people.
It is safe to say, I have been thoroughly traumatized by this event. I will never again post a report, on SN or otherwise. I wish I could say I am going to quit chasing, cut my losses and return to New York, return to school where so many of you say I belong. But I cannot. I love pursing weather phenomena so much, I can honestly say there is nothing I wouldn’t cancel, or reschedule, or put aside, just to chase one more time. I have sacrificed my own time, my education, my dwindling pool of financial aid money, two storm-demolished cars, and countless sleepless nights and long road-weary days – all for this thing we all love so much…the chase…the storms…this soberingly dangerous and dazzling entity we call weather. I am enamored with it, and have been since youth. On that common ground, perhaps we can all be brethren once more.
On that note, I will let my rebuttal rest. I await your inevitably scorned replies with dismal anticipation. Below, in my next post, are photos of the NE storm I reported as a tornado. May it shed some light on the degree of my error.
-Erin Wheeler
Hello,
My name is Erin Wheeler – or, as I have more recently come to be known – the “moron†who sent in a report on the Nebraska storm on April 23rd 2010. I have been watching your comments pour in on this thread since the incident occurred, and I will try to address as many of your concerns as possible herein. For all of you who took the time to comment on this thread, I ask that you take the time, also, to read my rebuttal, as doing so seems only fair.
First, let me say that, following this event, my depression has been profound and asphyxiating – particularly due to some of the comments posted on this thread, which I’m sure is only a fraction of the inconceivably awful things being said of me among fellow chasers. It’s rather easy to lash out from behind the protective glare of a computer screen, but to all of you trolling the forum, I beg that you remember that I am indeed a person – a person with feelings – feelings which have been deeply hurt by the insensitivity the good lot of you have shown me. I ask that you all take that into consideration when commenting here, to my post or any other.
I know you have all decided that I am a moron. Maybe that’s true. Maybe I am moron. I am a moron who has a degree in philosophy, a moron who is now attending one of the top schools in the country from which I’ll receive a Masters degree next year. I am a moron who speaks three languages, a moron who learned ancient Latin for fun, a moron who has been studying particle physics and string theory since adolescence, who owns two observatory-quality telescopes (a 14 inch and an 8 inch) and enjoys astrophotography and photographing planetary nebulae during the non-stormy seasons of the year. I am a moron who knows the name of most every star and celestial object, and can point them out in the sky and name them by messier catalogue number. I am a moron who was published by the time she was 10. I am a moron who knows the Fibbinocci sequence by heart, who has 25 digits of pi memorized, and relaxes by reading the works of Hawkings, Einstein, or the literary and philosophy greats – Heidegger, Schopenhauer, Jonas, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, Rilke, Pessoa, Proust…among others, of course. I am a moron who loves Biology, Astronomy, Entomology, Physics, Philosophy, and above all – above ALL – Meteorology. Yes, a moron I may well be – but if I fit the bill of an imbecile, by what standards do all of you judge yourselves? If I am a moron, I suspect I am in good company with the rest of you.
That being said, allow me to clarify the most important aspect of this fiasco: I DO NOT INTENTIONALLY ISSUE FALSE REPORTS. I would never do such a thing, and to be honest, I am hard pressed to imagine someone who could – what would possess someone to go out of their way to intentionally compromise the noble efforts of true storm spotters? What kind of monster must you all think me?
This is my fourth year officially chasing storms, and while I am far from a veteran as many of you are, I am not exactly the “newbie†you all have accused me of being. I wish I could consider myself so green in the field of meteorology – at least that would lend me some excuse for the mistake I apparently made that day. I have been studying meteorology since youth; when I was six, a tornado hit Texas and took the roof off my house. Fear first fueled my Metrologic endeavors, but now it is very much an unbridled passion that sends me to the storm-fraught plains each spring. Against the wishes of my professors and advisors, I left school this spring to return to Texas and chase the plains. Living with my parents in Texas makes me miss my apartment in NYC and my life back in the City, but there’s nothing that could keep me away from the spring-time storms with which I have fallen so desperately in love.
Now, on to the part you all actually want to read: I am a girl in a man’s field, chasing because I love it so dearly I cannot turn away from it even when I most want to (and as of now, please believe I’d like to run away from all of you and never show face in the field again) and I, Erin Wheeler, am guilty of making a mistake. Yes, despite how good I apparently look in a bikini, I am in-fact human, and prone to err. Have not all of you made a mistake in your long, experience-rich careers? If you have not once made a mistake – watch yourself – you’re overdue.
But on that note, it seems there is another topic here to address. Have we forgotten what we are all out there for? It seems to me, most of you (not ALL of you, of course, but most) are out there chasing tornados because you want to take the amazing photographs and videos that you can show off to your friends online the following day, or else you are selling your shots for quick cash to the nightly news shows, or perhaps you’re just another adrenaline junky who has yet to take up skydiving. But that’s not what we are supposed to be about. We are supposed to be about earlier warnings, about collecting data and performing science – but particularly about earlier warning times, so that lives might be spared from the raging tempests that all too often claim their victims before they have time to take shelter. If we continue on this way, making everyone so afraid to post what they see for fear it will irrevocably tarnish their reputation, we will maim these efforts considerably.
Already many people are afraid to post to spotter network – and I can see why. If everyone were to have to endure the repercussions I have suffered by the community's hand, for any one fault or error, then no one will have the ill-sense to make a report – even if it is certain and confirmed. Why would anyone risk having their reputation be so incorrigibly marred as mine has been, just to save some trailer park from the onset of an unwarned storm? We are setting ourselves up for failure if we continue on this way; some leniency is, in my humble opinion, much in order.
I have only reported 6 times – on SN or any other forum – in my entire 4 years of chasing. Only twice have I reported a tornado. One was on April 26th, 2009 of last year, in Sedgwick county, KS – that tornado was more than confirmed, and you can see my video of it traversing a long wheat field on YouTube. The second tornado I have reported was the one on April 23rd of this year – the one about which this thread is concerned. So if I were so carelessly making reports, would I not have reported many more rain-veils and land spouts since then? After all, I have chased nearly every storm the plains have offered for the past four years – from Texas nearly up to Canada and straight over to the Atlantic Coast. I am clearly choosey when it comes to what storm phenomena I report, albeit this one time, a flawed report.
Is it not, at least, a lesser-crime – if a crime, indeed it be named – to warn of rain-veil which one honestly believes to be a tornado and in-fact it is not, than to ignore what could be or become a tornado for fear you will be seen as a hack if it isn’t one? I make my case with the following recount: it was last year, and I was chasing with Tyler Constantini and Eric Burns. Night had nearly fallen and we were about to call it quits for the evening; we stationed our vehicles in a dirt conclave overlooking the Red River. Oklahoma sat visibly on the horizon, and we were watching what we believed to be a benign storm fall just across the river. I got out of the car, and Tyler and I stood at the bank of the river. The sunset had backlit the horizon in sheets of pale pink and yellow; black, racing blocks of low-hanging clouds were filing in along the land just across the water. It was a distant view at best, but something about it seemed more ominous than merely rain. As we watched it form, I could see that everyone around me was shifting nervously – but no one wanted to be the first to say it. God forbid they should be wrong, after all, as we can all see from my situation what kind of hellish-rebuke comes to those who inaccurately depict the weather. So, being the foolish girl I was and clearly am, I said it first – though I am sure the well-trained eyes of all who accompanied me thought it long before I did. I said, “I don’t think that’s rain – I think that’s forming a wedge tornado.†And Tyler looked at me – he’s such a good man – he said, “Call it in!†And Eric Burns proceeded to do so. To my knowledge, we were the first to call in that report. That time, I wasn’t wrong. That was the Lonegrove tornado. It was an EF4; It obliterated two towns.
I feel I need to also address the issue of the funnel cloud I reported in Texas, on April 22nd 2010. Here is the official report listing:
Erin Wheeler 2010-04-23 01:21:00 UTC (S) Funnel Spotter is 3 miles E of Coleyville, TX
You all criticize so harshly for jumping to conclusions – finding me guilty of doing so when reporting the NE cell – but for a group who so disdains hurried assumptions, you all are guilty by the same right. You should all take a closer look at yourselves, in this way. It says C O L E Y V I L L E – not Colleyville with 2 L’s. Google map it and you’ll see I was reporting on the SPC confirmed wedge tornado in Cottle, TX. The NWS actually took the time to call during that post to warn me that I was under a developing wedge tornado and it was imperative that I continue eastbound to escape, and I quote, “imminent dangerâ€. The official SPC storm report for 4/22/2010 at the time and location in question. Note my report was posted 0121 UTC:
0133 4 SSE CEE VEE COTTLE TX 3418 10041 SPOTTER REPORTS LARGE WEDGE TORNADO. SPOTTER IS 2 MILES WEST WNW OF CEE VEE (LUB)
Flagging my report in Texas could very well have had a grossly negative impact – thankfully I wasn’t the only one to post a report on that cell. I was flagged how many times – 9 I believe it was said – because 9 people misread the location that SN automatically assigned to my report. Take a moment to weigh the scenarios. My mistake in Nebraska might have inconvenienced a few people at worst. You who flagged my funnel cloud report in Texas made a mistake which could have cost the lives of countless people – because the report was sound! Still, you wouldn’t find me so quick to troll the forums, berating the “morons†who can’t read, the “hacks†who can’t be bothered to look up the location of my actual report but instead make ill-informed assumptions – I wouldn’t stoop to such a depraved, immoral low – because that’s not the way we ought to treat our colleagues and fellow chasers when they make a mistake. That’s not what this community is about. We are brethren, and we ought to show some mutual respect and understanding as such. It’s a science, after all – not a competition. As it is, it’s turning into a glorified pissing contest. We must rise above these menial tendencies, and become people of the caliber of which we claim ourselves to be. If I have to be made a mockery of, then so be it – I willingly submit to this foul gauntlet of harsh commentary, if only it can serve as means to expose and rectify this childish behavior, in which we’ve all engaged on these forums.
Furthermore, with regard to my report on the Texas cell on April 22nd 2010, I’d like to point out that – even though I first received a phone call from NWS, warning me of an encroaching wedge tornado with which I was all too close to intercepting, and even though I could see in the incandescence of waning light a visible funneling mass on the horizon as the hail core closed in on me, and even though my radar clearly displayed data that was confirmative to this effect – I still reported it as merely a Funnel Cloud, as I could not see for certain that it was making some contact with ground, and as I always strive to do, I aired on the side of caution, reporting it as Funnel Cloud instead of a Tornado, because we all know how much repercussion there is if one overzealously reports a tornado. It was a conservative report, and two others in my immediate vicinity reported the same occurrence as a tornado – and, indeed, it was. My point is, I do attempt to be conservative always – so my reports shouldn’t all be held in such harsh review. I am not one to over-report – I just made a mistake, one time, when I reported the cell in NE the following day. But the cell in Texas for which I reported a Funnel Cloud was by no means flawed, or false, or inaccurate. It was a confirmed tornado, and I conservatively called it a Funnel Cloud. Anyone who has further qualms about the Texas tornado needs to check their facts before they run their mouths. God forbid anyone should make an idiot of themselves on these forums.
Also, I must say I’m a little – creeped out – for lack of better phrasing, that so many of you googled me, read through my blog, my facebook page – trying to dig up some dirt on me with which you might further you endeavors to mock and taunt me. It’s perverse, and worrisome. I had expected more from all of you. That being said, credit is due to those who berated this behavior, who would take no part in the backlash I’ve suffered. Thank you Jason Persoff, for being the sound voice of reason and moral obligation. You are a lovely person, it would seem, and one of the few I’d let see me in a bikini. All jokes aside, though – the sexist remarks don’t make it any easier for a young girl to infiltrate this male-dominated field. I know that most of you men care little about this, but at least you wouldn’t want to be known as a group of archaically-misogynist cads – and that’s precisely the reputation some of your commentary has merited. Also, thank you Hank Baker, Joey Ketcham, Scott Olson – and of course, thank you to my dear friends (though I hope I am not tainting their reputation by associating them with me, and forgive the fact that they know me, please) Andy Gabrielson and Tyler Constantini, who have come to my aid in the ordeal, being my voice on these forums when I hadn’t yet mustered the strength to offer some meek rebuttal in my own defense. As blame is due, thanks is due. The names mentioned above ought not read this post and think that I am referring to them when I discuss the immoral nature of the inexcusably childish and cruel commentary that makes up the majority of this thread. They stand above, and ought to be named as such. Please forgive me if I have failed to mention someone who has also been kind or reasonable, or at least gentle – I have not left you out intentionally.
Lastly, since you all have shown such interest in my background, allow me to make a correction: I am not currently pursuing an MFA in FICTION – although, some of you seemed to like the idea that I was, as it lends me to even less credibility, somehow – I am receiving my MFA in NONFICTION, meaning I am not accustom to fabricating details, but instead, reporting the facts to the best of my subjective perception, and whatever truth can be found therein. This holds true for storm reporting, and for my writing endeavors in general. I know that some of you have a problem with the syntax and style of my writing when reporting weather phenomena, and to this end, I have but one refute: Several of you made very valid points when it comes to using jargon in reports – you all maintained that it should only be used if one can use it accurately, and though I believe I am well-versed in meteorologic-speak I do not fancy myself an expert to the degree that I can only phrase a description using those terms, as one might be if they had received copious amounts of formal education in the field, which would needless-to-say demand it of them. I write the reports the way I do because I do not wish to muddy a description with even plausibly-misinformed terms or jargon words. I write them the way that I write naturally, simply because I feel it upholds the sanctity of my perception in the best way possible. If you find some flaw with my ability to report because I do not always use your clever science semantics, then I’d say your reaching far to find some flaw with me, and I would then ask, why? What have I done to merit such distaste from so many of you? I love what you love, and I aim to learn more every day. What fault can be found there?
Quickly, let me also disband the rumor that I called in to some weather station, as Darren Stephens suggested (post number 30) – I have NEVER called in a report, only reported via computer on SN, and I’ve only done that 6 times in my entire career. I wouldn’t even know how to call a weather channel, nor would I think to do so while in the throes of a developing storm. I report to warn spotters and to increase the chances of earlier warning times for surrounding communities. That’s the only glory I seek in this game. If there’s some other fame to be had, by calling in and chatting up weather stations, be assured I want none of it.
Also, I did not – as someone implied – Google my SN quiz; I made a 90/100, all on my own. I now have to take it again, which is fine with me. Some faith in me would be appreciated. Some faith, I believe, is merited to those who share your love, people.
It is safe to say, I have been thoroughly traumatized by this event. I will never again post a report, on SN or otherwise. I wish I could say I am going to quit chasing, cut my losses and return to New York, return to school where so many of you say I belong. But I cannot. I love pursing weather phenomena so much, I can honestly say there is nothing I wouldn’t cancel, or reschedule, or put aside, just to chase one more time. I have sacrificed my own time, my education, my dwindling pool of financial aid money, two storm-demolished cars, and countless sleepless nights and long road-weary days – all for this thing we all love so much…the chase…the storms…this soberingly dangerous and dazzling entity we call weather. I am enamored with it, and have been since youth. On that common ground, perhaps we can all be brethren once more.
On that note, I will let my rebuttal rest. I await your inevitably scorned replies with dismal anticipation. Below, in my next post, are photos of the NE storm I reported as a tornado. May it shed some light on the degree of my error.
-Erin Wheeler
Erin Wheeler
Follow-up Post: Pictures of NE storm
Read my previous post before examining these images. It's all I ask of you all. At least give me my defense, first.
These are of the NE cell I called in as a tornado. They were all taken in the same few seconds, one shot after another, while the car was in motion. They are sequential and unedited.
May my previous post serve as some due rebuttal and may these photos allow for this confusion, and my sullied name, to be put to rest. Feel free to contact me or to reply herein with any questions or further rebuke. I await your feedback. -Erin Wheeler
Read my previous post before examining these images. It's all I ask of you all. At least give me my defense, first.
These are of the NE cell I called in as a tornado. They were all taken in the same few seconds, one shot after another, while the car was in motion. They are sequential and unedited.
May my previous post serve as some due rebuttal and may these photos allow for this confusion, and my sullied name, to be put to rest. Feel free to contact me or to reply herein with any questions or further rebuke. I await your feedback. -Erin Wheeler
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Tim Shriver
EF4
I see nothing in the images even resembling a tornado or a "wedge".
Smart people do stupid stuff all the time.
Any way you cut it, it was a bad report and should not of been submitted.
Got to give you credit though for walking into the lions den.
Tim
Smart people do stupid stuff all the time.
Any way you cut it, it was a bad report and should not of been submitted.
Got to give you credit though for walking into the lions den.
Tim
rdale
EF5
You were not flagged the night before because of the spelling of the town. Read the comments - you said a "large" (how large?) funnel was "in front" of you.
http://www.spotternetwork.org/rqc/index.php?report=5222
Is "in front" of you to the west? Or north? How far away?
Notice the flags were YELLOW at that time, which means "Hey, you might have good info, but it's a little lacking." The RED flags, and the reason your account was locked, was solely because of the next day's report.
There is no HINT of a tornado in your pictures, so in my opinion 1) you are not a moron but 2) you are not ready to be reporting to the NWS yet.
http://www.spotternetwork.org/rqc/index.php?report=5222
Is "in front" of you to the west? Or north? How far away?
Notice the flags were YELLOW at that time, which means "Hey, you might have good info, but it's a little lacking." The RED flags, and the reason your account was locked, was solely because of the next day's report.
There is no HINT of a tornado in your pictures, so in my opinion 1) you are not a moron but 2) you are not ready to be reporting to the NWS yet.
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