chaser killed on his first tornado with cellphone

[William Monfredo]

"Amateur tornado chaser Richard Charles Henderson sent this cellphone photo of a tornado to a friend minutes before the tornado killed him." from http://newsok.com/oklahoma-storms-a...to-of-tornado-that-killed-him/article/3841315 . There's a lesson in there somewhere.

 

[K Johnson]

The Washington Post mentioned that El Reno took four chasers lives - I had been wondering if that was a mistake

 

[William Monfredo]

I am saddened, because no matter how experienced, it's tragic for a chaser & his family. And StormTrack has really given a lot of specific information on the various posts that relate to how something like this comes to happen. It's a demystification and desensitization that comes with media and technology that results in playing around with (in this case) a violent tornado day.
I've been concerned for something like this since when chasers found themselves in an Iowa tornado in 2008. I try to express the dangers of tornadoes to people with the fact that tornadoes have put a doorknob into the back of a baby's head. Think about it; why would you play chicken with something like that?

 

[Jake Orosi]

A first-time chaser, and a team of the most experienced and esteemed chasers in the country. So very sad.

 

[STexan]

Sad, yes. But also speaks loudly to certain "chasing" realities EVERYONE needs to be aware of going in. The reality is the uncertainty and unpredictability and no matter the level of experience, there is a chance you won't return home. A skid into the ditch, a flat tire, a loss of radar availability, a brief heavy rain quickly developing, and the other things we see occurred with the El Reno complex ... little things that can get ANYONE into real trouble and all of the training in the world will ultimately not guarantee success and safety in every situation.

The only thing that might guarantee success is to remain [very] far away from the mesos, which kind of defeats the argument many chasers will give to justify the chaser community's' existence. Of course proper training and accrued knowledge should be sought as it will greatly improve your chances ... just not guarantee them.

 

[Jason Haller]

With the deaths of Tim and his crew, I really have had to take a long look at how I chased. I really am looking back at storms and thought to myself, could this have been a El Reno situation. I try to keep my self as far away from the danger area as I can. I have rarely core punched so I think of my self as doing it right. Having said that the tornado in my picture was the EF-4 southwest of Salina on April 14 2012. To get to the storm I did core punch and looking back now, while the tornado it self was far enough off that we were safe I never put into my thoughts about, what if we blew a tire, what if it shifted and grew. I could be the name you guys are talking about now as well. It will make we really look at how hard I chase to get to a storm and will more likely just let it go from now on.

 

[brody_clifton]

I began doing research on severe storms using the internet sometime in 1995, beginning with zero knowledge of storm structure or forecasting. (The March 28, 1984 tornado outbreak in my area (eastern NC) was the catalyst for me. I was 9 then when people died in brick homes less than 10 miles to my NNW just after the sun set that evening.) In the spring of 1997 after about 18 months of studying, I began storm chasing. And I chased for 10 years thereafter, mostly in the trees and hills of NC/SC/VA. My worst scare weatherwise from chasing came 1 year later March 20 1998 when I mistakenly drove directly into rain wrapped circulation crossing I-440 in Raleigh. My rookie mistake that day was assuming the radar data I was using was live, when in fact the meso was WAY farther northeast. I stopped chasing regularly in 2007 due to the gas price hikes and other personal reasons, but still keep up to date with model reading and SPC forecasts most days, looking down the road for any supercell-favorable 500mb flow days across the country. Like Tim Samaras said in one interview, I really couldn't tell you why I storm chased, only that I was drawn to it from childhood. My point is, even with 18 solid months of almost daily internet research, and a year of experience 'in the field' chasing multicells and lewps, and even arriving late on a couple supercells in the trees in 1997, I was not prepared for my first tornadic encounter, and had that tornado been intense there's a high probability it would had been my last. The learning curve for beginners is steep, and is 100 % neccessary to really have even a snowballs chance of safely 'chasing' a tornado, and even then I/we all know the risk we are taking.

The El Reno tornado Friday: 1. I've never witnessed a tornado/meso behave like it did after it crossed 87 south. And the NWS analyses now are horrific of what really happened at that time. The storm expanded from ~1mi to ~2.6mi in ~1/2 minute, made the 75 degree turn left, and developed and rotated subvortices already rotating near 300mph with a forward movement/propagation of ~180 mph. All the while the entire mesocyclone of the HP supercell is dropping to the ground. Add to that: ~3 miles SE of the monster wedge an anticyclonic tornado touched down. I am still shocked/sad/angry we lost our friends Friday. I initially thought after hearing the news Sunday morning that if I discovered every single detail I could as to why, that it would help. It's Wednesday now, and there are no more unknowns of what went wrong I can imagine to look for, and knowing most of the details hasn't (and likely won't) helped me reach any closure.

 

[Joshua Nall]

Sad, yes. But also speaks loudly to certain "chasing" realities EVERYONE needs to be aware of going in. The reality is the uncertainty and unpredictability and no matter the level of experience, there is a chance you won't return home. A skid into the ditch, a flat tire, a loss of radar availability, a brief heavy rain quickly developing, and the other things we see occurred with the El Reno complex ... little things that can get ANYONE into real trouble and all of the training in the world will ultimately not guarantee success and safety in every situation.

The only thing that might guarantee success is to remain [very] far away from the mesos, which kind of defeats the argument many chasers will give to justify the chaser community's' existence. Of course proper training and accrued knowledge should be sought as it will greatly improve your chances ... just not guarantee them.

I've thought some about mechanical failure. I mean you could be driving a relatively new and reliable car and have the fuel pump go out, your stuck there. The likelyhood of that happening at just the wrong time is low, but things like that happen. I drive an older truck and it has died on me while chasing at least 5 times. 2 of those times I had hail falling and a meso passing fairly close to me. Each time I was able to fix it or it just started back up after an hour or so. Then just last week I had two rear flat tires at the same time which pretty much disabled my truck. Again a meso was spinning very close with hail falling. These things have nothing to do with experience and the only sure way to never have problems is to never put yourself in the possible path of a storm. After thinking about it though, I've decided that I'm just not going to worry about it. But this is something that I have not seen discussed concerning Tim and his crew... the possibility that there was mechanical failure, or that they possibly got stuck trying to turn around. Something which has happened to me also on more than one occasion.

 

[Jake Orosi]

The strange thing is, there are threads going on even now where people are severely downplaying the dangers of chasing. I mean severely. Even the recent deaths are being specifically used as an indication of how safe chasing is - "only four deaths in 40 years of chasing, it's practically the safest hobby on Earth!" Talk about mixed messages. I can't believe anyone in their right mind wants to share the road with new chasers who've been inculcated with such a cavalier attitude toward the kind of forces they're seeking out.

 

[Joshua Nall]

Well it is more safe than a lot of other hobbies or even everyday activities. You could also talk about the times just driving down the road and something terrible happens. I know we all know several people that have been severely injured or that have died in automobile accidents. I know a LOT of people that have been injured from being thrown from a horse. I will NOT get on a horse, EVER. I will go storm chasing. It is all how you look at it.

 

[Jake Orosi]

Chasing is driving around tornadoes, and is therefore as safe as driving always is, only with tornadoes. Essentially anything that can happen to you behind the wheel of a car on any stretch of road on any given day, plus anything that can happen to you when a tornado hits your neighborhood, are things that can happen to you while chasing.

 

[Joshua Nall]

Perfectly true and well said. So anyone that has a fear of driving amongst tornadoes should probably just stay home. The point I was making is driving is the greater danger.
I remember a quote that I just looked up again by Helen Keller.

"Life is either a daring adventure or nothing. Security does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than exposure."

 

[Kem Poyner]

I have been chasing for 20 years now. I have had about everything go wrong as possible. It is dangerous. There has been far more than 4 chasers killed, just not by the tornado. Car accidents from fatigue, slow moving tractors, lightning and even serious injuries from large hailstones. Those mud roads can be the factor that gets you killed also. When a rotating wall cloud temps you, since of reason can go out the window. If a mud road is the only means of keeping up with it, its hard to give up on it. I had high cross winds blow my truck into the ditch on a mud road, and I was sitting still! My brother and I got along side and tried our best to keep it from sliding but we could not stop it. The approaching wallcloud went over us just before it tornadoed. I can't imagine the horror Tim's team felt when they knew it was the end. I can't get it out of my head.

 

[rdale]

Far more than 4? That claim needs a little evidence...

 

[Shane Adams]

My main influences were Jim Leonard and Tim Marshall, during the video golden age of the late 80s/early 90s. They stayed back from storms, shot great video, and simply zoomed in for the closeup shots. I guess that's how I developed the style I have. It's just easier and more relaxing to have a buffer between you and the action. I like standing beside a tripod and not having to move for 20 minutes (Rozel, ooooh yeah). You won't get the shots that make the news and you won't get the love and admiration the "close guys" do, but you also don't have to worry about close calls. Being nervous or scared should never be a part of chasing IMO, which is why I eliminate danger through my style. Hell yes I watch those close up videos and I'm as wowed as anyone else, but for my own chasing, I prefer to be back in the shadows and away from the limelight of the thrill seeker guys.