I'm working in El Reno right now, about to move down to Anadarko for a day or two.

When I got to my room last night and turned on the TV for weather reports, they said there's potential for a tornado SW of El Reno, headed NE. My door faces west, so I just looked out to the left and within minutes a twister formed.

http://landry-family.com/Images/trndo1.jpg

http://landry-family.com/Images/trndo2.jpg

http://landry-family.com/Images/trndo3.jpg

That's incredible!

VERY cool photos.

Where would you have gone if it got any closer?

Very cool! Amazingly, I've lived in OK and now TX for my entire life and I've never seen one. Would like to, but from a safe distance, of course.

VERY cool photos.

Where would you have gone if it got any closer?

All I had was to run into the room and stay in the bathroom. Would have taken about three seconds to get there.

This is the closest I've been to one on land. It was probably 1/2 a mile from me when I took those pics. I have seen a few from a greater distance when I lived in Baton Rouge.

My cell phone was steady ringing with people calling to warn me about it. I told them all that I was very aware of it.

I've seen a lot of waterspouts when I worked offshore. I saw a really huge waterspout one day that would probably rate an F-3 tornado. It passed within 50 yards of the rig I was on. I felt safe inside 1/4"-thick steel walls.

They're calling this one a strong F-1 or a weak F-2. That spout was much larger than this and tore a lot of iron off the decks of a nearby platform, though it did nothing to the structure.

WOW... CJ you have all the fun !!!

damn chad!! great photos! thanks for posting!!

Wow!!

Suddenly i feel hungry for breakfast.

If you stay in that motel, who's house do you go to for the free home cooked hot breakfast?

Wow cool pics. I was definitely watching the news to make sure not tornados were gonna hit stillwater. I had to take the chevelle and run for cover from the hail (that never came haha) at one point as well.

That's friggin' awesome! Glad you're OK!!!!!!!!

What does something like that sound like?

Suddenly i feel hungry for breakfast.

LOL that's funny. I was thinking "DAMN look at that funnel.... mmmmmmm hammm and eggggggssss.........."

Thats freakin cool. I've always wanted to see a tornado as I find them very facinating. Of course i'd never wanna feel the power of a tornado personally, devistating pieces of nature.

My stepdaughter took these with her cellphone camera out of the window of the Suburban last year. We were heading home from the racetrack with the Chevelle on an open car trailer :eek:
http://www.usfamily.net/web/hoffbug/Tornado1.jpg

http://www.usfamily.net/web/hoffbug/Tornado2.jpg

http://www.usfamily.net/web/hoffbug/Tornado3.jpg

Amazing

What does something like that sound like?

People have said it ranges from the sound of a water fall to the sound of a freight train......I'd guess a whooshing-roaring sound? Chad.....what did it sound like to you?

BTW glad to see you stayed safe.

I think too many ppl have never heard a freight train. They dont sound windy or whoosing at all.

People have said it ranges from the sound of a water fall to the sound of a freight train......I'd guess a whooshing-roaring sound? Chad.....what did it sound like to you?

BTW glad to see you stayed safe.

I couldn't hear it. All I could hear was the town air-raid sirens, and the wind blowing. Also, I was talkin' to my wife on the cell phone while I was takin' pics.

I think it would have had to be a lot closer for me to hear it.

My mom says they sound like a freight train. Her roof was taken off by one, and she lived 200 feet from the tracks, so I have to take her word for it.

I actually noticed the breakfast sign first glance.Thats tornado was a pretty cool sight to see I bet. I have still never seen a tornado either myself and aside from the danger, always wanted to. To have it that close must have been quite something. All the more reason to go and get some eggs and bacon.

I wonder if the guy in that Dakota even realized what was behind him?

I think the freight train thing could be a classic case of copy cat. One person said it and someone else heard, so they say it, then it spreads and they say it, and so on and so on. Even though u cant hear the volume on video, it does capture the basic sound of a tornado. Dont ever sound like a train to me.

The tornado seemed to have been moving toward Denny's, and then suddenly veered away. Think it's trying to tell us something?

I think the freight train thing could be a classic case of copy cat. One person said it and someone else heard, so they say it, then it spreads and they say it, and so on and so on.

They sound exactly like a freight train...we had a F-1 pass directly over my house three weeks ago...at 4am.
Still repairing damage and cleaning up the neighborhood. :sad:

I've never seen one in person. I was in High School when the big tornado hit Fort Worth, and tore up downtown. I think there were a couple that popped up. I remember seeing the sky yellow. It was raining hard, and hailing. We were all sitting in the hall, my dad was at the door looking outside with the camera, haha. We had the tv on, watching the news, and I remember hearing when they were saying that there was rotation/one spotted in our area, everything went silent; no hail, no rain, no wind. That was pretty scary. It either went away from us, or didn't form all the way, I don't remember. My parents had hail damage on their house, that was it.

-rosie

They sound exactly like a freight train...we had a F-1 pass directly over my house three weeks ago...at 4am.
Still repairing damage and cleaning up the neighborhood. :sad:

That's scary. I guess if one had to hit, can be thankful it was "only" an F1. Glad you made it out okay :-)

As far as how it sounds, I don't know. I did come across this page though, maybe some members that have experienced them can say if it sounds like this:

http://sprg.ssl.berkeley.edu/marsmic/sound/testdata/tornado.html

-rosie

Bet that F1 had your adrenaline pumpin. Imagine one thats over a .5 mile wide with wind velocities ripping asphalt off the ground like this F5 did. May 3, Moore Ok 1999 (http://www.aerialok.com/tornado.htm) As far as sound try 100 freight trains all at once, 300+ mph winds will do that. I was in Del city when this Tornado came thru the aftermath wasn't pretty, it was picking up things like railway cars, semi trucks and tossing them like toys.
Heres a link to damage pics from the same Tornado, including a Suburban that got the motor knocked out of it and a railway car crumpled. Damage (http://www.srh.noaa.gov/oun/storms/19990503/damage/mikeb.html)

Glad you made it out okay :-)
Thanks! :thumbsup:
Strange part was the tornado was at the leading edge of this storm. It didn't start hailing and then raining until after it passed. Lots of green lightning but very little thunder, too.
Weird!

If DZauto catches this thread. I remember hearing from him that he watched a bad one (F4 or 5 I believe) pass right near his home in OK in 98 or 99 if I remember right. That one made news coverage all over. He then posted not long after that night about exactly what that area delt with after. Quite something from the sounds of it.

If DZauto catches this thread. I remember hearing from him that he watched a bad one (F4 or 5 I believe) pass right near his home in OK in 98 or 99 if I remember right. That one made news coverage all over. He then posted not long after that night about exactly what that area delt with after. Quite something from the sounds of it.

This was less than 20 miles from DZ's place. There are a lot of tornadoes in that area. I was in OKC last year, sittin' in a sports bar eatin' nachos and talkin to the waitresses when a huge one was headed our way, right across Mustang. That one derailed a train and damaged quite a few buildings.

The news stations there put a map up and show which streets it was on, live (as they do every tornadoes are in the city) . It disippated about 1/2 a mile from where we were at the time.

I wonder if the guy in that Dakota even realized what was behind him?

He had the pedal to the metal, as did everyone else on the road headed north.