List of high chaser traffic events

[Tim Supinie]

Would like to add 19 May 2013 (OK-66 east of Edmond, OK) to the list. Probably the worst chaser traffic I've been in, outside of the 19 May 2010 fiasco. Not a serious event on the order of 31 May 2013, probably a CTI 4-5 (which I assume means "Chaser Traffic Index" ... however that's determined).

FWIW, I was in SW OK on 10 May 2017 and didn't have any problems with traffic. Of course, that's probably because we got a late start and didn't intercept the storm until it was entering OK. For the most part, I've had very few issues with traffic in the last several years. There's probably a bit of luck in that, though my traffic issues are strongly correlated with chasing in the OKC metro area. Decided after the 2013 shenanigans I wasn't going to do that anymore.

 

[James Wilson]

I love catching myself in your dashcams Dan lol ...So far I found myself at10:07 parking to film the below tornado. Question that tornado to the left (West) of your video at that point ... is that the end of McLean or another one? Sorry to hijack but I have not had confirmation yet.

BTW I totally agree on 6-7-2009 - Oregon, Missouri which was also aided by LARGE hail up to grapefruit size.

 

[Ed Sweeney]

Interestingly enough, I thought the 5/21/14 event certainly had a high volume of chasers, but seemed pretty orderly (at least where I was that day). While mindful of the volume, I never felt overly concerned/worried at any point, although it may have just been the luck of the draw on our part in terms of positioning.

On the other hand, Lou Ruh & I were discussing this thread during our chase this year and both agreed on one event that hasn't been mentioned yet: 5/20/13 near Pauls Valley, OK. Although we were chasing separately at the time, we both had similar experiences. Stopped dead for several minutes in a chaser traffic jam on a narrow road (i.e. no ability to turn around if need be), limited visibility in the trees, and a confirmed tornado (the Marlow/Duncan tornado) heading in our direction. I was sweating it out until we reached a 4-way intersection and were able to get out of that mess. Although thankfully averted, it stands out to me as an event that had a significant potential for disaster due to convergence.


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[Brett Roberts]

Interestingly enough, I thought the 5/21/14 event certainly had a high volume of chasers, but seemed pretty orderly (at least where I was that day). While mindful of the volume, I never felt overly concerned/worried at any point, although it may have just been the luck of the draw on our part in terms of positioning.

On the other hand, Lou Ruh & I were discussing this thread during our chase this year and both agreed on one event that hasn't been mentioned yet: 5/20/13 near Pauls Valley, OK. Although we were chasing separately at the time, we both had similar experiences. Stopped dead for several minutes in a chaser traffic jam on a narrow road (i.e. no ability to turn around if need be), limited visibility in the trees, and a confirmed tornado (the Marlow/Duncan tornado) heading in our direction. I was sweating it out until we reached a 4-way intersection and were able to get out of that mess. Although thankfully averted, it stands out to me as an event that had a significant potential for disaster due to convergence.


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Come to think of it, I do recall some rather insane traffic volume on 20 May 2013 down south. I don't think I was ever stuck in gridlock, but I was nonetheless amazed at how persistent the heavy highway traffic was all the way from wherever I exited I-35 (Pauls Valley? Wayne?) all the way down to the Duncan storm.

I've been concerned for several years now that another dangerous convergence event is likely if we get a focused setup within 50-60 mi. of OKC that pans out. The only one we've really had in recent years was El Reno 2013, and we know how that turned out. Yeah, it was also a worst-case scenario in terms of storm evolution and tornado size, but still. There have been other significant tornadoes in central OK, but we've continually lucked out in terms of their either being somewhat unexpected (Wynnewood 2016, Moore 2013) or on spread-out target days with numerous good storms (24 May 2011, 6 May 2015). The next time central OK is the obvious target on a big setup and gets the first/only good storm that day (e.g., 3 May 1999 or 8 May 2003), I'd genuinely be surprised if we escape without major problems. That being said, OKC is its own animal, and I agree with Dan that crisis-level convergence is rare outside this area.