It was April 24, 1993 and the sun was shining brightly as Brian Barnes and his best friend had their prom pictures taken. Although the afternoon sunshine made for good photos, it would play a sinister role in the weather conditions later that day.
But weather wasn't on the minds of 17-year-old Barnes, his friend and their dates as they headed to Tulsa, Okla. in Barnes' 1989 candy-apple-red Camaro.
The afternoon sun had heated the ground and created a precarious environment. Thunderstorms rolled into the area and mixed with the unstable air. Conditions rapidly disintegrated. The skies turned menacingly black and at 5:50 p.m., a tornado was seen over Tulsa. As softball-sized hail pelted them, Barnes and his friends quickly abandoned the car and took cover in a ditch.
The storm created two tornados within seven minutes of each other. The first was an F4 and the second an F3. Before the tornados dissipated they would kill seven people, injure over one hundred more and cause over $50 million in property and crop damage.
Barnes and his friends were lucky that day - they survived. The Camaro, however, was demolished.
It wasn't the first encounter Barnes had with severe weather and it wouldn't be the last. Living through a tornado would traumatize most people, but not Brian Barnes.
"It made me mad," he said. "I wanted to learn more about them."
Barnes now owns and operates Violent Skies, a tour company that caters to thrill-seeking storm chasers.
While some people take up knitting or Sudoku, a growing number of people are becoming storm enthusiasts. A storm chaser can be a dentist on vacation or a student researching meteorology. But they have one thing in common.
"People who go on these tours love severe weather," Barnes said.
Dan McCarthy, warning coordination meteorologist with the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla. and self-admitted storm chaser said the chase phenomenon began in the late 1980s.
"Media outlets began paying for video for any sort of media event," McCarthy said. Anyone with a video camera could be a contributor. He also believes the movie "Twister" helped fuel the craze.
Barnes has invested thousands of dollars in vans, equipment and liability insurance to get his clients as close to severe weather as possible.
This is a problem for some professionals. Meteorologist Jim Jaggers said, "It's not something I would recommend for people to do."
Jaggers did recommend storm chasers attend the National Weather Service's storm spotter training class. But he stressed even this training would not guarantee safety.
"I think it's pretty dangerous thrill-seeking," he said.
Corey Chaskelson a forecaster with the NWS in Memphis said storm spotter training classes are for people who report to the NWS about severe weather that has happened in their area. They don't follow the weather; they remain stationary.
The NWS uses this information to verify warnings and to determine if new warnings need to be issued for communities still in the path of the storm.
"The average person shouldn't think they can come out of storm spotter thinking they can chase storms safely," Chaskelson said. There are many variables that can rapidly change in a severe weather event and a person should be well-educated on those variables. "Things can change on the fly."
"Safety is the biggest issue for storm chasers," McCarthy said. But he believes storm chasing is fine as a hobby as long as the person knows how to position themselves safely.
Barnes stresses safety on his tours. His clients know the risks involved before they sign up and they are required to sign a waiver. They are also instructed on listening to and following tour guide instructions. If the guide tells them to get back in the van they are expected to get back in the van.
Barnes has witnessed 167 tornados. Since definitions of a tornado vary he admits that number is debatable. But he isn't just a thrill-seeker - he is a spotter for his county's Skywarn system. Barnes believes all storm chasers have a responsibility to report what they see to the authorities.
Local meteorologist Ron Childers would agree.
"The information they pass along is invaluable," he said. "We can tell you what's happening in the skies, but they can tell us what's happening on the ground."
Brave souls can book a tour with Barnes by going to www.violentskies.com.
Prices range from $1,897 to $2,747, but Barnes offers a 15 percent discount for students.
He has a money-back guarantee but said no one has ever asked for their money back.
"We always find something to chase," Barnes said.
