2006-2020 Science 2.0. It was NOT caused by a traffic jam. Note the story of the HS football team that was viewing videos when the storm approached and the coach said put on your helmet. Samaras submitted this footage to National Geographic in the weeks leading up to his death,. I'll take my chances sheltering in place, thank you. The Weather Channel issued the following statement: It was with great sadness that The Weather Channel learned of the passing of Tim and Paul Samaras and Carl Young as a result of the El Reno Tornado. And, just like a tornado, the last place you want to be caught in a fire is in your car. ", In reply to by Danny Caputi (not verified). "We still don't know why some thunderstorms create tornadoes while others don't," he . Stop having idiots chase things. Their car was found upright in a ditch with its wheels blown off and the engine a quarter-mile away. A new law or regulation merely needs to specify that tornado-related disasters that have not happened yet (because the tornado hasnt formed or has not yet arrived) can be considered in this public safety action. Photographed with a wide angle lens, the mile-wide tornado, is seen near El Reno, Jack-knifed: Traffic slowly moves around a semi tractor-trailer that was blown off the highway by the tornado on Oklahoma Interstate-40, Stranded: Vehicles trapped by flash flooding sit underneath on the road in Oklahoma City after severe thunderstorms brought tornadoes, high winds, heavy rain and hail to the area. This is an enormous loss for his family, his wide circle of friends and colleagues and National Geographic.'. The debris field created by Samaras' wrecked car, the report concludes, corroborates the footage, which shows the subvortex moving across the face of the larger tornado at about the time Samaras' headlights disappear. Carl Young, a California native, joined Samaras in the field in 2003. More than 210,000 customers lost electricity in the areas affected by the storm. Or, amateurs could get to a good viewing area well ahead of anticipated severe weather, and then stay put and off the road. Greg is definitely right about the distinction between researchers who need to be close to the storm to do their research (people like Samaras) and people who are doing it just for fun. At the end of the day, he wanted to save lives and he gave the ultimate sacrifice for that," Jim Samaras said. Eco-friendly burial alternatives, explained. However, the men's deaths have shone a spotlight on the dangers of storm chasing. 'We're scrambling around,' said Lara O'Leary, a spokeswoman for the local ambulance agency. I also heard mention of a storm chaser who, attempting a U-turn to avoid a flooded stretch of road, went off a hidden embankment and was lucky to avoid drowning. Five tornadoes battered the Oklahoma City area on Friday, while another tornado hit the Tulsa area early Saturday. Yes, Houston is a bigger city than OKC, and one of the freeway routes out of town takes you to Galveston, which is exactly the wrong way to go. I think that Tim Samaras knew what he was doing. A man's body was found about 1 p.m. on Saturday in a creek just east of Dobbs Road in Harrah, said Mark Myers, a spokesman with the Oklahoma County Sheriff's office. Dan Robinson had a clear view of their white Chevy Cobalt in his rear facing dash cam as they pulled up to and crossed Hwy 81 until their headlights fade behind the outer wall of the suction vortex that killed them. In Fridays storm, many of the deaths were caused by heavy flash flooding following the storms. Also, hurricanes tend to follow predictable paths and show up on sattelite. On the other hand, it means they are intentionally bringing civilians into the danger zone, and these civilians don't always know how to react if the situation gets out of hand. This storm was erratic and there will be more storms just like it in the future. It is fairly safe to say, that Mr. Samaras, his son, and Mr. Carl Young, sustained injuries when the sub-vortex of the El Reno storm directly impacted their vehicle on Reuters Road, west of the intersection with Radio Road. 'It's not even close to anything like what we had last week,' Smith said. On May 13, 2012 Norman PD blocked off roads and literally put me in the path of the tornado. Washington, DC: National Geographic. Another thing I noticed that was looked over in this article was the unique conditions that were present at the time that Tim and his crew were killed by the storm. In fact, the general wisdom is that if you are unlucky enough to be in a car when a tornado hits, you should pull over, get OUT of the car, and find a low place to hide. I've had several police hop in my car to look at radar and ask for opinions while chasing because they are not equipt with it. After seeing last month's tornado also turn homes into piles of splintered rubble, Ms Black said she decided to try and outrun the tornado when she learned her southwest Oklahoma City home was in harm's way. "We're trying to collect as many observations as possible, both from outside and from the inside. Roughly speaking, this is the equivalent of driving down the highway at several tens of miles an hour and suddenly flipping, three or four times. The point of this post is to note two things that I can't prove are relevant in this case but certainly are relevant generally. Then we get the micro information they are hunting, reliably and in a timely manner. Shooting tournament: People search a field for guns near a destroyed RV at a state shooting tournament that was destroyed in El Reno, Weapons displaced: Shotguns recovered from a field lay against a overturned trailor at a state shooting tournament that was destroyed in El Reno, Devastation: When the storm passed between El Reno and Yukon, it barreled right down Interstate 40 for more than two miles, ripping billboards down to twisted metal frames. Our community has suffered a terrible loss and our thoughts and prayers are with their loved ones. So, lets go back to the advice again. Other professional meteorologists, from The Weather Channel, were injured. 'I think we are still a little shaken by what happened in Moore. What this weather forecaster just did was to advice a couple/few tens of thousands of people in the path of a tornado to get in their cars and drive in the same direction. How close is too close? The Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla., said it believed the deaths were the first time scientific researchers were killed while chasing tornadoes. We are no longer accepting comments on this article. On her way home after the worst had passed 'the roads were like rivers,' she said. This included CNN. Lucky escape: A meteorologist from The Weather Channel was injured after his car (seen here) was thrown 200 yards by the storm, Waterway: A man uses a jetski to travel between his home and Osage City, after Missouri was affected by severe flooding, Storm damage: Navy veterans inspect the washed out road where they pulled a woman and her daughter to safety after their car flooded, A family in El Reno, Oklahoma inspect what is left of their home after Friday night's tornadoes battered the local area, Rain: Parts of Oklahoma City experience extreme flooding after multiple tornadoes passed through Central Oklahoma, For more videos, please go to the Long Center Austin. Those media outlets need to do a more professional job and take their responsibility as journalists rather than entertainers more seriously (generally, not just with respect to tornadoes). The weather service determined that the storm packed winds reaching 295 mph. St. Helens in 1980: some volcano researchers were killed in the eruption, but authorities were successful at keeping most civilians out of the danger zone. More cars on the roads also meant more trouble for Highway Patrol officers responding to automobile accidents during the storm, Randolph said. I don't know what they were thinking in a state packed with cars and almost no other transportation options and few shelters. When does spring start? Samaras' car was perhaps too slow and too light, and the road was not amenable to fast driving. 'The fact that it could happen to someone like Tim, it could happen to me, it could happen to anybody. If it was two more miles this way, it would have wiped out all of downtown, almost every one of our subdivisions and almost all of our businesses, White said. North Atlantic hurricanes sometimes do unexpected things as well, such as acquire a forward speed of nearly 100 km/h (the 1938 "Long Island Express" hurricane) or cross Florida twice (I'm forgetting which of the hurricanes in the last ten years did this). Tornado warnings were also posted Friday night near Tulsa and near St. Louis. In this country, if a cyclone alert is issued, all roads are closed. One thing in your favor: Tornadoes do not have politically powerful, wealthy backing, so it should be easy to enact laws regulating how people enjoy them :-), "I suggest that law makers in tornado alley states consider legislation making it a violation to intentionally drive into or near the path of known or likely tornados. But that. As for the accuracy of the cause of death of the Twistex team, I report here what was said at the time. Tim Samarass strategy was never to get into the direct path of a tornado. The fact that they endangered something itself is a thing. Their car was found. Thus the bigger the projectile you will make, the worse the fine. If you want to walk down Main Street, in downtown America, you can do that, because it is America. Even with interstate highways out of town in six different directions, you wouldn't be able to evacuate all those people in a few hours. To make this point, here are photographs from major media of a handful of examples of cars that got hit with the vortex, most but not all from this latest tornado: I admit that a flattened house may look pretty bad, may even look worse than a mushed up car, but generally speaking the interior lower floor room in a house that is badly messed up by a tornado is a survivable shelter, while there is no such shelter in your car. Oklahoma County sheriff's office has identified the victim as James Talbert, according to NewsOk. from a major non profit, click through the the X Blog to read the press release. . The groundbreaking promise of cellular housekeeping. I agree, Chris, that the specific suggestion that I made in the post that existing protocol should allow emergency personnel to keep roads clear. "He was a groundbreaker in terms of the kind of research he was doing on severe thunderstorms and tornadoes," Dr. Forbes said on The Weather Channel Sunday morning. Samaras was killed along with his son Paul and storm chaser Carl Young in Friday's tornado. My humble opinions: They sheltered at St Anthony's Hospital which was only about 1/4 mile from where the tornado touched down. Discovery Channel said it will honor the three veteran storm chasers, who regularly appeared on its show Stormchasers, with a special airing this week. Tornadoes happen in bunches and clusters. So maybe take the time to authorize a few specialists that take recreational tours storm chasing, and keep the rest of them off of the roads. Samaras' Chevy Cobalt was traveling east down a dirt road with the tornado to his south. Police believe the woman was driving an SUV near El Reno when the powerful twister flipped the vehicle over. He almost certainly didn't know that the rain-shrouded vortex was hooking toward him, to the northeast, and that he had entered its circulation. Though the tornadoes were not as strong as the EF-5 twister that killed 24 on May 20, fear drove many people to attempt to flee the area in their cars only to get caught up in heavy rains and flash flooding. Flash floods: Two pickup trucks are pictured stuck in high water along NW 23rd Street in El Reno. Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group. I don't think people realized how deep and strong the water was.'. Paul is right. But if the Acme Office Building, on Main Street, is on fire, broken glass is blowing out of windows and fire trucks and other emergency vehicles are trying to gain access to the building and nearby fire hydrants, and ambulances are trying to get in to pick up injured, and out to bring them to hospitals, you cant walk down Main Street. Furthermore only a tiny handful of "trained" spotters have ever been killed either and the only two I know of was back in 2011 on a single tornado. to get jammed up. He designed, built, and deployed instrument probes to measure atmospheric variables such as pressure and wind in the path of tornadoes. Missouri and Illinois around St. Louis were also hit by 12 tornadoes, at least 100 people are injured and 'numerous homes' have been damaged. Bats and agaves make tequila possibleand theyre both at risk, This empress was the most dangerous woman in Rome. Though we sometimes take it for granted, Tim's death is a stark reminder of the risks encountered regularly by the men and women who work for us. I also think that storm chasing is not necessarily a bad idea, of course it has its risks but imagine the benefits we could reap if we understood these monsters enough to harness the energy they release rather than letting it do nothing but cause a mess. Sometimes accidents happen. On the one hand, researchers have to pay the bills somehow, and this is one way to do it. You have to sensor the state. Oklahoma wasn't the only state hit by violent weather Friday night. 1:50PM. There are many chasers who do stop to render aid and time and time again they are often the first to reach the victims in crucial first moments with skills to save lives. So, the driving away several hours in advance isnt really smart, because you dont know that far in advance where away might be. I think one suggestion if such a law could ever be enforced to weed out the average thrill seeker is maybe require one, a first aid type certification. It is fairly safe to say, that Mr. Samaras, his son, and Mr. Carl Young, sustained injuries when the sub-vortex of the El Reno storm directly impacted their vehicle on Reuters Road, west of the intersection with Radio Road. They eventually revised this policy I'm assuming based on what has happened to folks in their stores during a bad storm. I doubt it. I have suggested that such a thing should be worth, at least, a parking ticket. When the NWS uses phrases such as "You will not survive, neighborhoods will be flattened" no one in their right mind is going to stay at home and wait out the tornado in their bathroom or closet above ground. Most new laws seem to be rehashes of existing laws that can be adapted. The kitchen windows blew in and Pa slid across the kitchen floor and we hid down under the stairs! More than half of those were people who had been cut or pierced. The shredded pieces of the car hook to the south then across the road to the northeast: I have difficulty fathoming the violence implied in that paragraph. Why not outlaw sky diving too? In fact, while writing this post I wondered what the three scientists were thinking as their car, and other cars, were hemmed in with a traffic jam that seems to have been caused by inappropriate reactions by a large number of people. Hail and heavy rain pelted the metro area to the point that emergency workers had trouble responding to 'widespread' reports of injuries. They were probably thinking, somebody should do something about this situation.". Sometimes, a mismatch indicates the need for something new, like a new planet or a, "A cloud is made of billows upon billows upon billows that look like clouds. The American Meteorological Society has released a preliminary version of its after-action report on the El Reno, Oklahoma, tornado, which killed noted storm chaser Tim Samaras, his son Paul and chase partner Carl Young. The EF5 storm that hit Moore decimated neighborhoods. Murdaugh is heckled as he leaves court, Alex Murdaugh unanimously found GUILTY of murder of wife and son, Pavement where disabled woman gestured at cyclist before fatal crash, Missing hiker buried under snow forces arm out to wave to helicopter, Insane moment river of rocks falls onto Malibu Canyon in CA, Fleet-footed cop chases an offender riding a scooter, Two Russian tanks annihilated with bombs by Ukrainian armed forces, Isabel Oakeshott clashes with Nick Robinson over Hancock texts, Do not sell or share my personal information. The Oklahoma State Department of Health reported on Saturday that Oklahoma City-area hospitals treated 104 people. Tim was a couple of miles south of interstate. Reed Timmer and Sean Casey and their crews modified vehicles that successfully survived being in powerful tornados (for Mythbusters fans, you may have seen these two teams vehicles go head to head with a jet engine to see how they would survive tornado strength winds on the episode Storm Chasing Myths). They said to stay at work if you had better shelter there. Very few professional storm chasers "work for the government" really, none. I have lived in the Oklahoma City area for 37 years and have been professionally chasing storms for the last 18 years. 528 people were killed by weather in 2012, of which about 200 were a result of high velocity air. Run them through the DMV and send out those tickets. 'I'm wondering if the tornadoes from a couple of weeks ago didn't frighten people so badly that this time they were taking no chances and trying to evade it by car,' said Oklahoma City Mayor Mick Cornett. Its a free country - youre obviously free to drive when and where you want, and I certainly dont want that to change, but something has to be done to avoid another tragedy like the one that killed 9 motorists Friday evening, including 3 professional tornado researchers Tim Samaras, his son, and intercept partner.