The Joplin Globe reports a rare occurrence and yet another amazing story to come out of the EF5 tornado that destroyed large part of Joplin, Mo. Three amateur storm chasers were out trying to track the storm May 22, 2011, when the tornado grew too big for them to chase.
As Eric Parker, his sister Kaylee Parker and their friend Mac Wright were taking shelter from the tornado at a local liquor store, Kaylee Parker was able to get a glimpse of the inside of the mammoth twister.
"I look up and saw these vortexes, and saw debris flying the in the air. It looked like I could see blue sky at the top," Kaylee told the Globe .
Her description sounds like it's from a movie. If you've seen the movie "Twister " you know exactly what Parker is talking about. Towards the end of the movie, both main characters witness the inside of a huge F5 tornado which matches Parker's view from the inside of the storm.
Scientists from the National Weather Service say the tornado was so wide, an eye could have formed that was several hundred yards wide. Much like the eye of a hurricane, the middle of a slow-moving tornado provides a dramatic and relative calm for a few seconds before the wall of the tornado hits again. This wall barrier also contains the highest winds in the tornado.
Radar hits near enough to tornadoes over the past 10 years have provided meteorologist with a computerized look at the inside of a tornado. Eyewitness accounts verify the radar's probing of the twisters.
As rare as this sight is for human eyes, others in Joplin reported seeing the same blue sky inside the funnel. It was a scarce combination of the size, damaging winds and slow movement of the tornado that allowed witnesses to both survive and see the tornado. Once debris was pulled away from houses where people were taking shelter, they could see the full fury of the storm.
All of these stories, eyewitness accounts and scientific appraisals of the tornado that hit Joplin will hopefully make our scientific understanding of nature's most powerful storms. If knowledge gained from the event saves one human life in the future, then the 150 people who died would not have done so in vain.
Even six weeks after the tornado struck, more amazing stories continue to come out of the debris. Every person's story is valuable and worth repeating in memory of those lives that were lost.
