Tornado - Ground Zero High Point, NC

Since I was a little boy I've been facinated, if not terrified, by tornadoes.



As an 11 year old boy growing up in Goldsboro, NC the March 28, 1984 tornado outbreak was not only the largest tornado outbreak in the state's history, it was close by, leveling part of nearby Mt.Olive and leaving me with curiosity that I haven't outgrown.

Growing up and working as a TV Photojournalist hasn't cured the curiosity...only inflamed it.

Fast foward 26 years, to the day, March 28, 2010.

It isn't my first go 'round with bad weather. I chased the one the hit Stoneville in 1998. I chased the one that hit Clemmons in 1998. I chased the one that hit Colfax in 2006. And in 1996 I remember accidentally driving headlong into a supercell with my 2 year old and (now ex)wife in the car.(note - I had my employer's permission to have family in car. I was the only photog at a very small shop) I digress.

I can't say I ever have that gut feeling or find myself in the right place, but I can always look back at the signals that might have helped my cause. The dog cowering in the corner for example should have been a clear indication that something was amiss in the atmosphere. That, or the competing meteorologists on mine and the other local news outlets yelling something about the sky falling.



Seriously, I've battled this urge before...do I stay put at home, or do I chase another storm that will peter out before the heater warms the truck up? (You ever notice how chilly it can get when these system's roll in?)

But this one was the real deal and as soon as I heard about confirmed reports of damage from the local authorities, I gave the radar on my cell phone a close look, plotted a conservative intercept of the supercell and left my wife in charge of the chili.

However, had I gone with my gut and drove more toward the front of where the storm was on my radar not only would I have had daylight left to get aftermath footage, I wouldn't have gotten stopped by dozens of trees (and one goosechase) on my chosen path into High Point.

When I arrived in High Point, I wasn't sure if I was in Ground Zero for what had just happened but I did know there were trees down everywhere and stunned people walking the streets in the heavy rain. And to make matters a bit more testing...2 more tornado warnings were issued as the storms continued to train along what I found out later was a west bound warm front that collided with east bound cold air right over our fair city.



I put together my video for the Sunday 10 o'clock news including working through road blocks and road closures to pick up this home video from Mickey Boylan of High Point who shot video as the tornado crossed about a mile in front of his house.



But the real answers came on Monday when the sun came up and my co-workers and I hit the streets.



There were way too many scenes of devastation for any amount of coverage to take in. Trees down by the hundreds if not thousands. Houses de-roofed as if by God himself. A family of 5 taken for the ride of their lives...almost to the death....escaping with just broken bones.



My obligation to my employer this day...catch up with the National Weather Service Meteorologist responsible for verifying the tornado and determining its power.



I met up with Meteorologist Jeff Orrock on Old Mill Road...ground zero of the High Point tornado. He told me how the winds were 120 to 130 miles per hour and later he discovered a mile farther north on this twister's course that it strengthened to an EF-3 tornado with a 138 mph wind speed.



Before and after meeting up with Mr. Orrock I gathered a fair bit of footage from the impact zones, trying carefully not to duplicate footage that our other crews had already shot...not and easy feat mind you.

This is what I came up with at the end of my work day....a look at how the NWS rates tornadoes. I also encourage you to check out the other coverage we provided and the pictures that people sent in.

 

As for catching that tornado in action with my own camera. There's always next time....or ya'll can buy me a storm chasing excursion in the midwest for my birthday.

Water Rescue - (attempt)

I spent most of this rain soaked, warning laced, former Tropical Storm Fay filled day, shooting consumer features on the outskirts of the metro area but when that was (not quite) done (but enough to call it a day) I was promtly dispatched to a swollen creek in Greensboro.



Buffalo Creek was up to the bottom of the bridge and rescue workers were in the water when I arrived. 15 minutes 'til the top of the 5, we were already on the air with a fresh tornado warning, one I was hoping I was headed to until I saw every rescue vehicle and dive team member for 20 miles hovering over the raging river.

I covered my camera and extened my sticks and joined them on the bridge peering into the water, looking for, well, I didn't know what.

As I moved off the bridge "for my safety" at the request of GPD I found that the grassy area just to the other side of the creek was a better view anyway.

You can see it up in that picture...dive team members were going under water SANS SCUBA and popping back up under the bridge in the dark air space between iron bridge beams.

With just 2 minutes until the station wanted a LIVE PHONER for the top of the 5 a Fire Department Spokesman gathered the media to give some information. 2 separate callers had seen someone near the bridge and they both thought that person had been swept away in the water. The divers at the bridge and personel downstream found nothing.

With that info fresh out of the mouth of the spokesman I stepped away from my camera as it continued to roll on the impromtu presser and gave the facts over the phone as the camera phone picture was up on the screen. My two cents and 4 questions later I was headed back with the video to air in the 6.

Just another day. (not that we have a former tropical storm stomping through here everyday)

Greensboro Tornado By the Numbers

14 hours, 13 live shots, 3 packages, 4 looklives, 2 phoners, 40 oz of Vault(drinks like a soda...) and one small pack of donuts later I'm back at home running on empty after being up 33 hours with no sleep.

And it's all just part of the job.



As the storms built around the Piedmont last night all I could do is sit at home and watch along with everyone else in TV Land as my station spent prime time in uninterupted, commercial free weather(gasm).(for 8 hours)

The thought going through my head....would this be the night I would get a late call to hit the road.

This thought happens often(OK Every storm:)).

In the winter it's Snow and Ice. In the Summer it's hurricanes. But in the Spring it's severe Thunderstorms and the possibility of Tornadoes.

I watched the radar and listened, almost ready to hit the sack when a tornado hit the town of Advance and Clemmons and damage reports started to trickle in.

I didn't have to go there as my co-worker, Photojournalist Kenny "Bluedog" Cravens, lives in that area and I knew he had it covered.

But when I saw a radar image near Kernersville around 11:30 I got the gut feeling that I sometimes get. I said outloud to my wife, 'That's going to be bad".

5 minutes later the station called sending me to I-40 for two tractor trailers overturned.

What I heard on my scanner told me this was a big deal. Multiple reports of cars overturned. Buildings with walls collapsed. Airplanes pushed around the PTIA tarmac. A truck overturned with an entrapment...that turned out to be deadly.

I drove around West Greensboro all night getting as much video as I could and I even did a live report at 1AM with all the video I could squeeze on the air in 3 minutes.



But it wasn't until daybreak that the reality of what happened set in.



Large trees toppled like bowing pins.



Tall Pines snapped like toothpicks.



A 200 yard wide swath of woods mowed over like a patch of briers.



The pictures don't do it justice...it's impossible to show everything.



It's just a miracle that this is where the funnel cloud chose to touchdown. A few miles in any other direction would have been disaster for this area.


Here's my Liveshot...




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