National Association of Storm Chasers and Spotters (NASCAS)

53 responses so far ↓

• 1 cityesda1 // Jul 12, 2008 at 1:01 pm

  Thank you for letting me join. I would like to know who has the best wireless weather station?
  Also, we are looking for ADI-201 HT’S.

• 2 Shelley Chiodini // Jul 15, 2008 at 10:31 am

  thanks for letting me join. I’m a huge fan of storm chasers ^_^

• 3 wiregrasswx // Jul 19, 2008 at 1:59 pm

  Good Looking Site!!

• 4 teamangel219 // Jul 28, 2008 at 12:03 pm

  thnx for letting me join i’m just starting in the business and i need a few pointers. do i need any license???? and where do i get them? i’m currently a volunteer through skywarn but looking for bigger and better storms!

• 5 gdewit51 // Jul 29, 2008 at 2:44 am

  Thank you very much for letting me join you and your fellow members. I rally get a buzz when a strm comes, and then get the camera out and shoot it.

• 6 Donovan // Aug 1, 2008 at 1:26 pm

  Thnx for letting me join. I would like to go on a storm chasing tour someday. I love observing the weather. My mom has me look at the clouds so I can tell her if a storm is coming later.

• 7 bubba1331 // Aug 3, 2008 at 7:38 am

  Hello all, I’m hoping to meet up with someone from Central Vermont ( Rutland) to explore and chase New England weather.

• 8 liamspyro // Aug 3, 2008 at 1:41 pm

  hi please please let me come a stom chaser am so instest in weather

• 9 02harriesr // Aug 9, 2008 at 11:24 am

  thank you so much for letting me join, im based in england atm and im dying for some exciting storms, all it ever does here is rain! my dream is to chase storms in the states nd one day ill hopefully gt there!

• 10 F6tornado // Aug 11, 2008 at 11:30 pm

  Thanks for letting me join! Although I am in Hawaii and severe weather is somewhat rare here, they do occasionally see landspouts and waterspouts and even the very rare tropical storm or hurricane.

• 11 cez // Aug 12, 2008 at 3:44 pm

  i hope to 1 day chase storms in the usa nothing really happens in england, i’d alo like to be able to read the sky

• 12 Phil // Aug 31, 2008 at 5:37 pm

  Hi everyone, I’ve been a stome chaser since high school, this year I celebrate 30 yrs in the buisness. and being in Oklahoma, we DO have the buisness

• 13 Phil // Aug 31, 2008 at 5:39 pm

  Great……….correct the spelling time…….

  Storm Chaser( not stome)

• 14 Phil // Aug 31, 2008 at 6:00 pm

  To teamangel219, You shouldn’t need a license, if you attend classed put on by your local emergency mgt or weather service ,they can help you out there. depending on the agency you are associated with in your community, just go to the classes that are put on. your local emergency mgt has classes in the spring for new spotters and its also continious ed ( updates of latest info) for the seasoned spotters. just check it out and have fun

• 15 jnewtonchaser // Sep 17, 2008 at 5:43 pm

  I am just starting to become a storm chaser… I am getting my associates in science from Penn State and then my bachelors in Earth Sciences with minors in Meteorology… I have always been fascinated by weather and my brother is a programmer and he is just now getting his associates in programming… We are starting our own storm chasing team anyone can ask me about our storm chasing team…

• 16 Sandstorm413 // Oct 3, 2008 at 6:39 pm

  Thank you for allowing me to join! I have been obsessed with storms my whole life. I drive a sand funny car that is named “Taken By Storm”. I look forward to talking with you all in the future!

• 17 Gazer_1 // Oct 18, 2008 at 12:09 pm

  Hi,
  I am happy to join thank you.
  I became interested in storms when i was 6 years old when my father told me to go out and play during a really bad thunderstorm!
  I was almost struck by lightning and was hooked ever since. what a wonderfull dad i had.
  Well i hope to talk to you guys soon.

• 18 Jimh47 // Nov 3, 2008 at 3:11 pm

  Thank you for letting me join. I am a stprm spotter for Tazewell C ounty in Illinois for 3 yrs. I am also a ham radio operator with call sign KC9FWR.
  Once again thank you.

• 19 Tyler1 // Nov 17, 2008 at 5:45 am

  I am proud to join my storm chaser friends. My family calls me Tornado Tyler. I am also fascinated with all kinds of weather. All the different cloud formations are so interesting. My dream is to go storm chasing and see my first tornado.

• 20 cu-n-oz // Nov 19, 2008 at 4:01 pm

  Hello to all from central Tx. I appreciate the opportunity to join and look forward to conversing and posting.

• 21 chas3717 // Nov 30, 2008 at 3:46 pm

  hello to all from ohio

• 22 chaser430 // Dec 10, 2008 at 8:44 pm

  Lead chaser from PA new to this blog. thank you for letting my Storm Stalkers club join. We average about 6-12 tornadoes each year. I work in conjunction with NWS Binghamton to report severe weather in PA and NY.
  If anyone is from PA,NY or surrounding states please feel free to visit my website
  http://www.Stormstalkersclub.net and check out my storm spotting/chasing 101 class I offer online for free. I do also teach the theory of spotting and chaser ethics in PA.

• 23 chaser430 // Dec 10, 2008 at 8:45 pm

  If you live in OH, MD, NJ, NY, DE and are interested in Storm chasing, spotting or just joining on a tour please visit my website
  http://www.stormstalkersclub.net and check it out!

• 24 KC9NCR // Dec 11, 2008 at 9:08 am

  Nice Site,
  I am a Central Indiana SkyWarn/StormNet Spotter for Madison County. Just looking to further my knowledge with any usfull information I can obtain about storm cell development.
  Thanks for the membership.
  ~KC9NCR

• 25 hopkinschaser // Dec 15, 2008 at 10:55 am

  do we get a certificate

• 26 lori // Dec 30, 2008 at 5:28 pm

  Glad to read all your comments. Honored to be part of this site which we all love. I have traveled with the military for the past 29 yrs. and have seen my share and been directly involved with the storms before and after. I am an EMT/FF. I also would like to “Chase a Storm” up close. As of now I am on the helping end of things after the storms. love tornados. Thanks again for having me. will chat soon

• 27 F5CHASER // Jan 5, 2009 at 4:11 pm

  Thanks for letting me join. I will see some of you next season as i hunt for the best extreme weather this planet can provide. It should be a fun time and hopefully i get the shots in need to make it in this business.

• 28 grgcsh // Jan 6, 2009 at 6:03 pm

  thans for letting join the group.

• 29 Lintsack // Jan 12, 2009 at 3:44 pm

  Hello, everyone. Glad to be a member. I have been chasing since I was 16. I was a thrilll/hobby person until I was 20, then I spotted and reported storms and tornado activity in MN and WI. Have a great winter everyone!!!
  For: cityesda1 – you can get the two-way radio you were asking about at: http://www.eham.net/reviews/detail/446

• 30 grgcsh // Jan 14, 2009 at 6:54 pm

  im a first responder/ff in ga i been the fire service for 10 years as a vol.

• 31 tornado // Jan 16, 2009 at 7:01 pm

  Thanks for letting me join.

• 32 stormchaserMI // Feb 3, 2009 at 8:18 am

  I Study storm at the Age of 12years as

  I grew older it became more fun i can tell if
  a storm was coming by clouds an computers weather info from ( N.W.S /N.O.A.A/N.S.S.L
  SKYWARN/N.A.S.C.A.S)
  I work for N.A.S.C.A.S .

• 33 Beanagusthepig // Feb 9, 2009 at 10:00 pm

  Any Storm chasers in the Southern plains area on this board? I am looking to hook up with a couple chasers for some video footage .. I am not interested in going on a tour. I am interested in the real thing.. Please contact me at Beanagusthepig@gmail.com if you wouldn’t mind another car following you.
  Thank you,
  ~Britt

• 34 Glenmoor 902 // Feb 18, 2009 at 6:51 pm

  I want to say Hi to everyone out there, Im a Volunteer Firefighter in Ohio for the last 34 yrs but am soon to retire, I am looking forward to being a part of this site as I am very interested in Storm Chasing

• 35 dragonfly4857 // Feb 22, 2009 at 12:50 am

  Thank you for letting me join! Living in Florida gives me a variety of storms to chase. I LOVE IT!

• 36 Glenmoor 902 // Feb 22, 2009 at 1:07 pm

  Hey look its snowing here in East Liverpool, Ohio and its Tornado week on the TV, know where I’ll be. By the way we are looking into establishing a new organization for Chasing and Spotting in Columbiana County Ohio, we will promote Safety first and any info or Pictures we obtain will be used for Training and Education for local residents and Public Safety

• 37 K4DFR // Feb 24, 2009 at 8:35 am

  Hello to everyone! I’m an Amateur Radio Operator with an innate interest in severe weather, particularly tornadoes. Glad to be a part of this! I’ve never really been chasing before, but one actually chased me a few years back. When I have more time, I’ll log in and tell you all about it. Just a teaser: It was an F-4 (one the old scale), in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, in December 2001. It missed us by 150 yards, and I was the first spotter to call it on the ground by ham radio. More to come!

• 38 K4DFR // Feb 24, 2009 at 8:45 am

  Correction…December 2000…for some reason I had 2001 on the brain this morning…I’ll give you all the details later.

  I’m a member of a group called ALERT (the letters in the name stand for the Alabama Emergency Response Team). We are a group of Amateur Radio Operators who operate and maintain an Amateur Radio console at the National Weather Service Birmingham office (BMX) in Calera, Alabama, just south of Birmingham. We work in the forecast center, right where the warnings are issued. Our mission is to take storm spotter reports from Amateur Radio Storm Spotters in Central Alabama and relay those reports to the forecasters, who are issuing warnings while we handle radio traffic.

  You can go to our website at http://www.alert-alabama.org and see some of what we do. If you go to the Skywarn Audio link on that page, there are several audio recordings of the radio traffic recorded from the aftermath of the tornado I just told you about. The first entry on the Skywarn audio page is me with a damage report across from Englewood Baptist Church, which narrowly survived the F-4. Also, there is a written article which details amateur radio involvement in the area on that day, and a quote from me is included in that article…if you are at all interested.

  I’ll give you many more details later on, when I have more time.

  Best regards!

  David Reed, K4DFR
  Shelby, Alabama

• 39 K4DFR // Feb 25, 2009 at 2:01 am

  Now for my story: On Saturday, December 16, 2000, we traveled to Tuscaloosa for a birthday party for one of our family members. I knew that we had been outlooked by the SPC for a moderate risk of severe weather that day, so I took my HT radio with me, in case it might be needed. I didn’t know just how close to ground zero we would be.

  We made the 60-mile trip, and no sooner than we had arrived at the church where the party was to be held, the Birmingham NWS Office issued a tornado warning for Tuscaloosa County. The sirens started going off just as we were bringing in the presents and the birthday cake. After we got everything inside, I immediately turned on my radio and found the Tuscaloosa County Skywarn frequency. I checked in to the net, gave my call sign, and identified myself as a NWS trained, advanced-level Skywarn Spotter. I told them where I was located, and asked if I could be of any assistance. The Net Control Operator called me back and said that there were no spotters in the neighborhood where I was located, and asked me if I would mind keeping my eyes open for anything that warranted reporting. I advised them that would not be a problem.

  About three or four minutes later, the Net Control Operator called me back and asked me to look to the southwest…a strong area of rotation was indicated by Doppler Radar, heading in our general direction. Within about 45 seconds of that transmission, I saw it. The wall cloud was as classic as it gets…a lowered, anvil-shaped cloud with definite rotation. Then, a funnel suddenly dropped…it was some 600 yards to our southwest, and appeared to be moving in our general direction.

  At this point, I was scared to death. I keyed my radio and shouted my call sign…I was breathless, so I could say nothing else. Net Control replied for me to go ahead, and I shouted, “TORNADO ON THE GROUND IN ENGLEWOOD.” They asked me to repeat my transmission, and I said once again, “TORNADO ON THE GROUND IN ENGLEWOOD…600 YARDS TO OUR SOUTHWEST, MOVING EAST-NORTHEAST AT NEAR 60…THERE’S NO TIME…WE’RE GOING INSIDE FOR COVER.” Net Control then replied, “ALL STATIONS, ALL STATIONS…THIS IS A TORNADO EMERGENCY…WE HAVE A TORNADO ON THE GROUND IN ENGLEWOOD…THIS CHANNEL IS CLOSED TO EMERGENCY TRAFFIC ONLY.”

  The next few minutes were a blur…just before going inside, I remember seeing what I thought was a pickup truck near the top of the funnel. We went inside and huddled with the rest of the birthday party crew, about 40 in all, including 17 members of my family. The power was out, so flashlights were the order of the moment. Everyone was huddled in the interiormost hallway of the church building, praying and pleading the blood of Christ over that building and the people within it. The building shook as the tornado passed by…then we heard nothing but silence.

  My brother-in-law said, “Let’s go…there’s people hurt or dead…we’ve got to go help.” I had been a volunteer firefighter/EMT for nearly 20 years, but I had absolutely none of my gear with me that day. All I had was my radio, and I felt really helpless, but away we went.

  My first impression upon reaching the back door and seeing the outside was one of total disbelief. On the way in, we were looking at all the nice homes in the subdivision just across the road, as well as the new Winn Dixie shopping center that was just about ready to open. The first thing I saw after the tornado passed, and we walked outside, was that the shopping center was gone…one wall was left partially standing. The four-lane highway in front of it was littered with cars, thrown all over the place, some turned upside down, others on their sides, and still others turned the wrong way on the opposite side of the road, many drivers trapped inside. The beautiful homes in that subdivision across the road were heavily damaged, some two-story structures missing roofs, and others missing the second story altogether. It looked as though a bomb had exploded before us. And everything was eerily silent, until I heard screams coming from across the road.

  I started calling in damage reports. Unknoown to us, the local Birmingham area media was monitoring our radio transmissions, and when I called in the damage reports from our area, one of our family members, who didn’t make the trip with us, heard that damage report repeated on TV, and he just about panicked, knowing that all 17 of us were at ground zero. Also unknown to us was the fact that the local ABC affiliate had followed the tornado on its tower camera, located in the area, and had managed to follow it for almost the entire track through southern Tuscaloosa County.

  We finally made it out to the four-lane highway, and I began a patient triage of sorts for Tuscaloosa Fire & Rescue. We could hear the sirens in the distance, but because there was so much debris on the roadways, so many trees down and so many power lines blocking roads, it took them quite a while to reach us. Once they finally got there, we rode through the subdivision to check for more injured or fatalities.

  We went back to the church to check on everyone. On that trip back, I became painfully aware of just how close the tornado came to us. The edge of the damage path was just less than 150 yards away. It was as if God cupped His hand over that building to protect us. I cannot adequately explain it outside of that.

  Shortly after making it back to the church, we discovered that the adults were serving cake and ice cream to the children, in spite of having no power…they were trying to get the children to remain calm. The phone was ringing when we got there, and a lady answered it, and pointed to me and said, “Here…it’s for you.” I soon found myself talking to a producer from the local NBC affiliate, who soon put me on the air to speak with their Chief Meteorologist.

  The NWS Office conducted an aerial storm survey the next day, and we learned that the damage in our immediate vicinity was rated as strong F-3 (on the old Fujita scale). Just over the hill from our location, the tornado damage strengthened to F-4.

  I remember feeling guilty as we left town that day. We were leaving to go home, while many others there had no home to go to. We were able to go home and celebrate the Christmas holiday with our family 9 days later, but some had nothing but the clothes on their backs, and no family. While I felt guilty, I also felt incredibly blessed to be alive, and fortunate to have all of my family with me.

  I was the first spotter to call the tornado on the ground by amateur radio. I’d never seen a tornado before aside from TV and pictures, and I was thoroughly frightened and yet in awe of its power at the same time. Though I had never been on a chase before, I was later told that we wound up being much closer to the tornado than many professional chasers would even dare to risk.

  You can find out more about this storm by going to our website, http://www.alert-alabama.org. There you will hear Skywarn Audio of that day, including my first report of damage across the road from the church. There’s also an article about the role that Amateur Radio Storm Spotters played that day.

  Hope I haven’t bored you to tears by now. Hope you got something out of this story.

  Blessings,

  David Reed, K4DFR
  Shelby, Alabama

• 40 K4DFR // Feb 25, 2009 at 4:44 am

  Footnote to that story: 11 people were killed in that tornado. I forgot that little tidbit…now you understand why we feel blessed to be alive.

  David

• 41 Tim // Mar 8, 2009 at 1:43 am

  Weather and it’s extreme formation and changes is what drives me to see something new everytime. Any and every storm no matter where it is, is different and complex in it’s own DNA! The thrill of something powerful, beautiful, but yet dangerous, has such an awsome impact on me, that since i was a kid i’ve been hooked to storms and chasing them also! May GOD keep us all safe from any danger from any weather event, especially the storm chasers like me. GOD Bless you all!!! See ya out there! :0)

• 42 VRob // Apr 9, 2009 at 7:21 pm

  Thanks for letting me in, as a Police Officer we were always watching the severe storms, and here in North West Louisiana we have our share of storms and tornados…….Of course right now all my storm spotters classes and actions are gone, but my love for a thunder storm is still very active…..watching the doppler network right now on tv, we are having warnings all over

• 43 JAMIEANDALEC // Apr 12, 2009 at 9:54 am

  HELLO !!! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR LETTING ME JOIN YOU GUYS!!!! TORNADOES HAVE ALWAYS FASCINATED ME AND I HAVE ALWAYS WANTED TO BECOME A STORM CHASER SPECIALIZING IN CHASING TORNADOES. ON APRIL 10 2009 , THE NEAR TOWN OF MURFREESBORO TN WAS HIT REALLY HARD AND I CAN ONLY IMAGINE WHAT IT WAS LIKE SEEING SOMETHING OF THAT MAGNITUDE AND AMAZEMENT I LIVE IN COLUMBIA/ SPRING HILL AREA IN TN AND I MUST SAY “WHY WASNT I OUT THERE TAKING PICTURES?” SO NOW I WANT TO BECOME A STORM CHASER AND I NEED TO KNOW HOW TO GET STARTED……..SO CAN SOMEONE TELL ME HOW I CAN GET STARTED? THANK YOU

• 44 jmart // Apr 12, 2009 at 10:33 am

  Thank You for letting me be part of you guys. Its an honor.

• 45 SkyRyder // Apr 16, 2009 at 12:37 am

  Thanks, For letting me join, I am weather analyst. I am out there during floods, blizzards, tornados, gustnados, 100 degree temps to below negative zero temps, studying a little rain cloud or studying a massive supercell. The greatest chase I have ever encountered was 5 tornados all in one county within just a few hours back in 2002. Most chasers are lucky to see just one within a week. But any ways thanks again

• 46 SkyRyder // Apr 25, 2009 at 12:10 am

  I recommend that everyone volunteers for the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network (CoCoRaHS) for now just a few of the states are involved but with in a few years I’m sure that it’ll be nation wide. If interested go to this website (www.cocorahs.org) I have my whole family involved. Thanks

• 47 Chase // May 7, 2009 at 9:31 pm

  Glad to finally get back on. Been a member since May of 2006, long before you charged for membership cards. You had promised to mail me some back then, I’ve never received even after sending emails to you folks. I’d appreciate if someone got back to me on that already!

  I am an amateur chaser- having chased all throughout TX and OK for 5 1/2 years. Moved to the Northeast and am planning a trip back during May 21-27 with my new HD video cam.

• 48 KD5SHY // May 10, 2009 at 12:25 pm

  Cool site…. I’ll be here lots.
  I’m the Deputy Emergency Management Coordinator for Lafayette county AR. Im also the only storm chaser for this area. I started chasing in texas when i was in high school and im still loving it. I’ve been the Deputy E.M.C. for a small county in Texas then i moved to Arkansas in 1999 and took the spot of Deputy E.M.C. in Lafayette County.

  I like this site. Good job
  Robert

• 49 roughrider // Jun 4, 2009 at 10:30 am

  HELLO ALL. I HAVE BEEN SPOTTING AND CHASING FOR 15+YEARS.I AM AN IRON WORKER FROM QUINCY IL.(JUST EAST OF KIRKSVILLE MO.)AND WAS ABLE TO CHASE THAT STORM.I AM A MEMBER OF SKYWARN (ADVANCED).IL.EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY C.E.R.T.(which i recommend for everyone who chases) AND 5 RELATED CERT.FROM HOMELAND/FEMA EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE INCLUDING SEARCH AND RESCUE. BECAUSE AS WE ALL KNOW CHASERS AND SPOTTERS ARE OFTEN THE FIRST ONES TO COME TO STORM DAMAGED HOMES. I SHOULD ALSO NOTE THAT I WAS BORN AND RAISED IN WESTERN IOWA, SO I GUESS YOU COULD SAY I WAS BORN TO THIS LIFESTYLE. IF ANYONE IS PLANNING TO CHASE IN THE MIDWEST AND HAVE ANY QUESTIONS PLEASE FEEL FREE TO E-MAIL ME AT kellyjim46@yahoo.com AND I WILL DO MY BEST TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS. GOOD HUNTING….. JIM

• 50 Landcruiser // Jul 19, 2009 at 10:53 am

  Hello folks,Glad to be part of this site. I love the hunt! Marcus

• 51 DonnaReeves // Jul 26, 2009 at 11:12 am

  Thank you for allowing me to join. This is a nice site.

  Donna Reeves/KJ4CAU

• 52 w5wdh // Aug 18, 2009 at 3:04 am

  Howdy, great site, proud to be a member, Im lookin for a chase pardner

• 53 w5wdh // Aug 18, 2009 at 3:13 am

  JAMIE I WOULD BE GLAD TO HELP YOU GET STARTED, DROP ME A EMAIL, w5wdh.stormtracker@yahoo.com 73 JERRY

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