Black eye in Canadian style for chasers?

[Eric Tourangeau]

I remember JF Massicotte and Steeve Laurin chasing a supercell this summer at Trois-Rivieres, Quebec. They tracked a strong-rotating meso that gave a funnel cloud. They called Environment Canada and they updated the warnings with a tornado warning.

In Canada, we almost never see any tornado warnings. We have severe T-Storms warnings, because meteorologists in EC offices can see what's happening with their private level III data.

Looking back the the story about JF, I think it's the first time a tornado warning is emitted because of a chaser's report, and I think it's the beginning of a slow progress.

In the article, what is a "professionnal chaser" ? Someone who chase for money? Look, in Quebec province, we have 6 tornadoes reported per year. In ontario, it's a little higher. Who's the man who can make money with this? lol

Well, I don't know if I was the first but Environnement Canada have made a tornado watch in 1999 after I call them to report a funnel cloud under a very high cb over Laval (Quebec, Canada)... and maybe it was because my website was well known and they knew I was a weather fan (so...I see funnels everywhere!!....), they didn't trusted me and don't have emitted any tornado watch until I send them a picture of the funnel!!... They were very astonished because their radar didn't detect it at all.

 

[Marc Remillard]

Sorry about that, didn't know this story!

 

[davecarlsen]

I think what Dave Phillips (climatologist, BTW, not meteorologist) was getting at was
a) people taking shelter instead of taking pictures with their kids in the foreground and a tornado in the background--such pictures came about from the Elie tornado, if memory serves, on the front page of the Winnipeg Free Press--there was an outcry but it came out later that the people were well away from the tornado and never in any danger
b) people getting too close to tornadoes to get video--and Reed already admitted he got a bit too close to the Pipestone tornado (the day after the Elie tornado).

Either way, I have to say that I think spotters and chasers make an incomparable contribution to severe weather bulletins, and not only in Canada. But EC does not and cannot officially condone chasing due to liability issues. I suppose Mr. Phillips might have been getting at this, as well.