JOPLIN, Mo. -- I drove from Branson, in southern Missouri, to Joplin to check on my sister-in-law and her family on Sunday. We arrived in Joplin around 8 p.m. to help my wife's family, who live south of town. Everyone in my family is OK after the devastating storm.
We saw the aftermath. But it was local media and storm chasers who captured the deadly tornado in action and on video. Here are some of the initial videos that show the massive tornado as it hit Joplin.
KSN -- Watch
Local station KSN was broadcasting live as the tornado sirens sounded and the storm hit. A camera mounted on the tower captured the scene from a bird's-eye view. Someone in their home recorded the event unfolding on television from their living room.
There are two things notable about the television station coverage. First, initially the weather man at the station said the flashes of light may have been caused by lightning. He quickly changed his tone as the camera picked up electrical transformers blowing out. Second, viewers could see the tornado increasing in size as the camera followed it. Everyone in the studio is heard saying "take cover right now!"
Unfortunately, the girl on the live broadcast didn't help. Toward the end of the video, she said "I don't think it's going to hit our station, but take cover anyways."
Storm Chasers -- Watch
This second video recounts the formation of the tornado as it started and is perhaps the best video of the massive funnel. The life of the tornado looks innocent enough as it is very skinny and appears to be out in the countryside away from houses. But then the tornado gets very wide and thick in what seems like an instant.
The tornado chasers also surveyed part of the damage immediately following the tornado traveling down one of the main streets of Joplin. It's interesting, in a frightening way, to compare this video on the ground to the one from the television tower in the air to see the tornado from both perspectives.
First Person Video: Taking Shelter -- Watch
One man captured five minutes of video from residents taking shelter at a local convenience store in the heart of the destruction zone. If you truly want to know what it's like to be terrified in a tornado, this video is the one to watch.
It's dark in the back of the convenience store. You can hear children whimpering and crying as their mom tries to comfort them. Then, after a minute, you can see lightning flashes from outside the glass window. The manager tells everyone to get down and low to the ground.
Suddenly, you hear wind picking up at about two minutes and 10 seconds into the video. Then the screaming and praying ensues. Less than a minute later, all that is heard is a massive roar of wind. At the very end, the video cuts to a scene that looks like part of the roof that had collapsed into the building.
Tornado Alley Video -- Watch
Storm chasers Jeff and Kathryn Piotrowski were taking video in Joplin as the tornado roared through town. The debris field in the middle of the tornado is fairly well defined and intense. All I could think about when I saw the wood and dust gathering in the tornado was that those were people's homes.
YouTube: RevolutionNo1 -- Watch
These people in a vehicle aired 12 minutes of tornado video on YouTube. Warning, there are some strong curse words used in the video. The footage starts on North Rangeline near the Northpark Mall and the vehicle proceeds to the south. The videographer is pointing the camera to the west -- the initial spot of the twister.
They pass the Toys "R" Us and proceed into the areas hardest hit by the storm before it passes. About four minutes into the video, the passenger seat person named Roger comments on the light not turning green at Rangeline and 20th. The driver suggests taking shelter in the Home Depot across the street.
Despite the fact that it's around 5:30 p.m. in the early evening and the sun should be shining brightly, the view to the west is pitch black as the twister advances. At the 5:40 mark of the video, the horizontal rain is upon the vehicle and one passenger says just floor it and get out of here. The engine revs up. At about seven minutes, they debate taking shelter or to get on Interstate 44 and outrun the tornado as hail pelts the car.
Just after nine minutes, the main voice comments there are 160 knots of shear two miles away. That translates into wind speeds of 184 mph. Just eight minutes beyond the time the driver was commenting on taking shelter at Home Depot, the building was destroyed. Roger's advice to get on the interstate may have saved their lives.
William Browning lives in Branson, Mo.
