 “Relief” isn’t the feeling most people get when they see a dark funnel cloud drop from the sky and begin hurling debris on the ground. But it’s one of the emotions WILL’s Ed Kieser experienced on May 30 when he and meteorologist Scott Olthoff sighted a twister on a storm-chasing expedition in rural Woodford County.
Ed, WILL’s chief meteorologist, has wanted to see a tornado for years, and has gone out storm chasing several times in the past when his schedule would permit. But he never saw a tornado. “In 1994, I spent two weeks with Project Vortex in Texas and Oklahoma, and there were no tornadoes during that period,” he said. “Some people thought I might be a jinx. I’m glad I’ve seen one. Now the pressure is off.”
His relief was tempered, however, by his concern for people in the tornado’s path. Ed and Scott, who substitutes in the WILL weather office, were a comfortable distance away from the tornado when they first spotted it dropping from a dark cloud behind a farmhouse. “We couldn’t see the bottom of the funnel, so we ran out into the road. Scott yelled, ‘Debris!’ ” The tornado was nearly invisible at the bottom at first. “I always point out in my tornado show that many tornadoes start out as invisible at the bottom. They don’t look like they’re touching the ground, but they are.” They were south of the tornado and it was heading east, so they were able to watch it as it barreled across the landscape. They immediately called the National Weather Service to report what they saw.
Scott and Ed set out just after 5 pm in Scott’s Ford Taurus, with only a weather radio and a cell phone for equipment. “We talked about where we could get to in the time that we had before dark,” said Scott, who went storm chasing as an atmospheric science student at the a University of Illinois and has seen 13 tornadoes. Scott and Ed had to make sure the network of roads in their location would enable them to find the storms and to get out of harm’s way if necessary, he said. They called back to the WILL weather center and talked to Mike Sola several times to get information about where storms were forming.
They spotted the tornado about 8 pm after the National Weather Service issued a warning for Woodford County based on Doppler-indicated strong rotation in a thunderstorm. The tornado destroyed several buildings at a farm and knocked down power lines in the area. No one was seriously injured.
“The weather service estimated it was a weak F-2 tornado,” said Ed. “We got close enough to see some damage, but couldn’t go up to the farm because of the downed power lines.”
Usually when severe weather strikes, Ed is in the weather office at WILL. “When big storms are nearby, I feel more comfortable being here at WILL because my priority is making sure our audience is warned,” he said. “My more extensive experience is following storms on radar and talking to storm chasers who are out in the field.”
But, he said, after doing his tornado preparedness seminars and educating people about tornadoes for years, there’s nothing like seeing one for himself. “I’m ready to go out again,” said Ed. “Storms are fascinating to watch.” And now that he’s seen his first tornado, he can relax and enjoy the chase.
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