Tornado chase safety rules for beginning chasers

Thousands of people roam the U.S. Plains each year searching for tornadoes and other severe weather.  It's a thrill to immerse yourself in nature's most extreme atmospheric conditions, and so you'll see thrill-seekers side-by-side with professional scientists all along the road when a tornado roars across the land.

The inherent dangers in being outside in severe weather, coupled with the crowds that often form around tornado-producing thunderstorms, make for very dangerous conditions. So you need to know some safety rules before you head out for your first chase.

The #1 most dangerous part of chasing tornadoes is driving on the highways.  Consider this:  You're driving in unfamiliar territory, often along back roads.  You're focusing much of your attention on the skies around you, at the expense of attention you should be focusing on your driving.   To make matters worse:  there are dozens of other vehicles in your vicinity doing the exact same thing.  So here are ways to make your chasing and driving experience much safer:

• Always chase with a partner.  One of you focuses on the weather and skies and the communications.  The other one focuses on the driving.
   
• Watch for the weather that's right in front of you.  Severe storms often dump heavy rain that can create dangerous water on the road.
   
• Avoid chasing in cities.  Your danger factor goes up tremendously when you combine heavy traffic, congested freeways and limited sightlines to the sky because of city buildings.
   
• If you pull off the road to watch something in the sky, pull all the way off the road.   Make sure other drivers can safely get around you.
   
• Always make sure you have plenty of fuel.  Experienced chasers will not let their tanks get below 1/3 of capacity.  You never know where the next chase will take you, and you don't want to run out of gas in the middle of nowhere.
   

Tornadoes aren't the #1 threat to your safety while chasing, and they're not #2 either.  Keep in mind that tornadic thunderstorms also produce other types of deadly weather.  Outdoors in a thunderstorm, your biggest safety threat is lightning. 

Lightning can strike anywhere in or near a thunderstorm - there is no safe place to be outside when lightning is present.  Storm chasers accept that risk, but there are ways to mitigate it.

• Stay in your vehicle as much as possible, especially when you're in an open and unobstructed area.  
   
• Stay away from metal objects such as towers and fences.
   
• If a cloud-to-lightning bolt strikes within a mile of you, get inside your vehicle immediately.  Be thankful the lightning didn't strike you, because it most certainly could have.

 

You don't need us to tell you tornadoes are dangerous.  Heck, that's why so many people chase them.  Truth is, there are many ways you can get hurt.  But some simple guidelines will give you a better chance of coming home with only stories and photos and no scars.

• Know what types of storms to chase.   Look first for "discrete supercells".  Supercells are the types of storms most likely to produce tornadoes.  "Discrete" means the supercell is by itself and not side-by-side with other storms.  Finding a discrete supercell will allow you room to watch the storm from a safe location.  Also, since nearby storms can compete with each other for their "food" (warm moist air), a discrete cell has a better chance of developing a tornado and will give you a better chance of seeing that tornado from a safe distance. 
   
• Avoid chasing squall lines (a long line of storms).  Chasing a squall line almost assuredly means you'll have to experience a storm head on.  Second, squall lines are less likely to produce tornadoes that are easy to see.
   
• When chasing a traditional supercell, the best and safest place to look for a tornado is to the south and east of the storm.  The southeast quadrant keeps you out of the main part of the storm and gives you the best view into where a tornado might form.  In the diagram below, note the dangers from other viewing angles relative to the storm.

• Always remember that storms are constantly changing, and no storm will behave exactly as you predict it will.
   
• Always keep looking at the sky in all directions.  Even if you're looking straight ahead at a tornado a mile or two away, keep in mind the same storm may be trying to form another tornado, perhaps right over your head.
   
• Always, always, always have an escape route.  This means having a good map (and a GPS unit if available) and knowing in advance where you would drive to safety if a storm suddenly turned toward you.

Even the experienced storm chasers will tell you this - don't chase at night unless you really know what you're doing and unless you accept the additional risks.   The storms are much harder to see, and so are the other obstacles you'll face, especially the roads and the traffic.

 

There are many great sites that discuss the specifics of tornado-chasing safety.  This article was intended only as a summary.  Please click on the related links posted on the pages of this story to learn a lot more.  Safety first!