Lawsuit proceeding against The Weather Channel due to fatal car accident

[Jacob Melton]

How to avoid a lawsuit..

1. Forecast well so you don't have to rush to target.

2. Leave early and enjoy a nice relaxing sit-down lunch near the target.

3. Know Plan B in case first target does not work. Probably another boundary intersection.

4. Have eyes on the road for defensive driving. Chase partner is critical for safety.

5. Hang back from the drama. You'll enjoy structure and 98% of the thrill. Unlike an eclipse, you don't have to be right up on it.

6. Hang back for safety, structure, and supper. First off storm, first seated for steak and ice cream!

My thoughts exactly! I'd rather give up the best shots instead of making myself another statistic trying to get it.

 

[Steve Miller]

Washington Post published an article this afternoon entitled: "Storm chasers react to the wrongful death lawsuit against the Weather Channel" https://outline.com/JsrgqH Some here are quoted.

 

[Jeff House]

My thoughts exactly! I'd rather give up the best shots instead of making myself another statistic trying to get it.

Yes I agree. We saw all the DDC cycles in 2016 but from far away. Sometimes I regret not getting closer. Actually I used to get closer back in the day. Harper 2004 comes to mind. However I've seen few shots of structure for DDC. We have this amazing mid-level flow and it worked out. Never encountered a road block and were able to navigate to the Airport for that last cycle or two.

 

[Quincy Vagell]

I don’t want to go off on too much of a tangent, but I agree about keeping a distance to favor structure and avoid the masses. Rare days like DDC are nice to get close, since it was relatively easy and safe to do so, but it wasn’t long before the traffic bottled up. Trying to get close to Pilger was a pain with so much traffic congestion on the main road. Kudos to those who were already close in the first place and didn’t have to fight for a good shot.

Too many times I recall a rain-wrapped storm with most rushing to get directly underneath the core/meso/etc. If visibility is low, odds of seeing something photogenic are already low, plus the potential for an accident to happen with hoards of chasers on wet roads with limited sight distance increases dramatically. I’d favor taking a step back, seeing if there’s some wider angle photo opportunity and perhaps bailing for a tail end Charlie or an otherwise less followed, but low risk, high reward situation. That very thing happened in Winona, KS a few years back when I saw a nighttime tornado that very few chasers saw, due to a line of storms farther north.

There’s also something about being able to get pictures/video of storms that aren’t cluttered with tons of vehicles in the foreground. The road less traveled it is for me, not always, but as often as possible.

Ironically, I’ve had more driving issues with animals (deer) than actual chasers, but I’ve certainly had a few close calls due to wreckless behavior by others. I feel like I’m a very cautious driver and I try to keep my distance, especially at higher speeds and/or when roads are wet or icy.

Since this tragic incident, I am borderline paranoid at rural intersections and will often look both ways multiple times. Even if there’s no stop sign, if the view is obscured by something, whether it’s a tree, bush or something else, I may slow down or stop anyway.

 

[Marc R. O'Leary]

24MAY16..one road away from a mess of idiots:


12JUN17...again, keeping my distance:



I would rather get shots like this than deal with crowds. I saw it, it was awesome. Not worth my life.

 

[Jeff House]

Cousin Eddie in DDC Kansas 5/24/16: Clark, she's a beaut!

 

[Warren Faidley]

Fortunately, the recent lack of storm activity has reduced the potential of chase-related accidents. Once the active pattern returns (which will eventually happen), things will get back to normal. In fact, things may pick up within the Looney Tunes division as chasers try to make up for lost time or excited newbies / locals are unleashed. Throw in a multi-storm, high risk day outside Wichita or Oklahoma City and see what happens.

 

[Jason Boggs]

I think I can speak for Warren as I've chased with him the last 8 years. We stay out of the higher risk areas and go to secondary targets a lot to stay away from the masses. I love chasing Marginal or SLGT RISK days over MOD and HIGH RISK days. Less stress, less traffic, and just less bullshit altogether. Campo, CO and Hammon, OK type days are my perfect type of chase day.

 

[Jeff House]

Interesting that Warren groups Wichita with OKC. You all think it's that bad out of ICT now? Probably, lol, but my friends are there.

Hanging back is one way to still chase the primary target (best odds). We only saw 1-2 other vehicles at a time in my above DDC chase. Saw more near the Airport, but not much. We could/should have gotten closer, but I think even half the distance would not be too crowded. These days the herd is right up on it.

 

[Warren Faidley]

Interesting that Warren groups Wichita with OKC. You all think it's that bad out of ICT now? Probably, lol, but my friends are there.

Hanging back is one way to still chase the primary target (best odds). We only saw 1-2 other vehicles at a time in my above DDC chase. Saw more near the Airport, but not much. We could/should have gotten closer, but I think even half the distance would not be too crowded. These days the herd is right up on it.

The last time I chased a major event **near** ICT, it was quite nuts. (April 12, 2013 outbreak). Not quite as insane as OKC, but it drew a lot of local traffic. It was worth the traffic insanity (see picture) but after dark the traffic jams were kind of unnerving as the storms moved towards ICT so we bailed. This was the same day Woodward was hit, killing 6.

 

[Jeff Duda]

The last time I chased a major event **near** ICT, it was quite nuts. (April 12, 2013 outbreak). Not quite as insane as OKC, but it drew a lot of local traffic. It was worth the traffic insanity (see picture) but after dark the traffic jams were kind of unnerving as the storms moved towards ICT so we bailed. This was the same day Woodward was hit, killing 6.

I think you're referring to 14 April 2012. There was no outbreak on 12 April 2013. And the 2012 event was pretty crazy up along the KS-OK border.

 

[Marshall Stoner]

The problem is WTC seems to think they have to compete with youtube now. It's a failing race to the bottom.

 

[Warren Faidley]

I think you're referring to 14 April 2012. There was no outbreak on 12 April 2013. And the 2012 event was pretty crazy up along the KS-OK border.

Yes, thanks for that correction.

 

[Drew Terril]

Since this tragic incident, I am borderline paranoid at rural intersections and will often look both ways multiple times. Even if there’s no stop sign, if the view is obscured by something, whether it’s a tree, bush or something else, I may slow down or stop anyway.

This is something I learned many years ago growing up in rural Oklahoma. If you can't see clearly, it's better to stop anyway. Even when there isn't a cloud in the sky, many of the locals blow right on through as well. It's not just chasers you have to worry about on those rural intersections with no form of traffic control. Not by a long shot. It's something I've always been very cognizant of since I started driving in general, which carried over to when I started chasing nearly a decade and a half ago.

 

[Jack Fleetwood]

I'll agree to the point of having chasers documenting weather, but I'll disagree with the using it to make money part. That's the crux of this whole thread...if money/followers was not an option, these kind of risks would not necessarily be taken.

In the case of these guys I don't think it was finances that motivated them, at least in the beginning. Maybe I'm wrong, but they were chasing long before they were hired by TWC. They were hired because people liked watching them. They were entertaining and of all the chasers broadcasting live, they always seemed to get on the storm. Two things TWC wanted... followers and storm footage live.