Twister At Eleven O'Clock!!

This video frame capture shows a tornado on the ground just west of Arthur, Iowa as seen from our storm chase vehicle. We were traveling north on County Highway M31 south of the town around 8:30 PM, Saturday, April 9, 2011. In the driver's seat at left is Ryan Alliss, and in the front passenger seat--out of view--was navigator and radar monitor Ethan Milius. About a minute later we stopped our vehicle to avoid getting too close and to get out and get a better look at the twister, seen only during flashes of lightning. (The month of April 2011, was one for the record books nationally, smashing the old calendar month of April record of 267 tornadoes set in 1974 by over 300--The National Weather Service's preliminary estimate is over 600! April 2011 also had the highest number of tornadoes in any calendar month, surpassing the previous record of 542 twisters in May 2003. Having been witness to just a part of this extraordinary month as a storm chaser on April 9 was without a doubt a thrilling and awe-inspiring experience for me! The serious side of this, of course, is the number of fatalities and property damage done by tornadoes in the wake of this event--especially in the southern part of the country. Our prayers and condolences go out to all of you who have had your lives tragically changed.)