Tornado Chasing Tornado Education Tornado News

20 Twitter accounts to follow to stay tornado aware

Ian Livingston

It’s that time of year again, tornado outbreaks and rumors of outbreaks are in the news.

A large tornado looms near Bennington, Kansas on May 28, 2013. (BeansMom via Flickr)
A large tornado looms near Bennington, Kansas on May 28, 2013. (BeansMom via Flickr)

Plenty of actual tornadoes, too. And probably a lot more to come this week and in coming weeks. The coverage can be overwhelming. If you’re looking for specific information it can sometimes be a challenge.

While Facebook and Google and other great resources are also available, I’ll just focus on Twitter here, partly because that’s where our group spends most of its time on social media.

In lieu of favoritism, I’ve ordered this must-follow 20 alphabetically by first name.

Basehunters Chasing

(Twitter page)

These guys are a must if you’re into great imagery. They live it full time during the season and are one of the top chase groups out there. I don’t follow many on multiple social media sites but I do with Basehunters. It’s worth it just for all the storm pictures.

Cory Mottice

(Twitter page)

Cory is based in the heart of Tornado Alley, and he’s a storm chasing meteorologist. I’ve probably said enough. He’s a great general weather follow as well, but a standout when it comes to tracking outbreaks and the like.

Daniel Shaw

(Twitter page)

Shaw is from Australia, but he spends spring out in tornado alley chasing tornadoes every year. He’s also really good at it, and a down to Earth dude to boot. Plus he gets stunning imagery.

Greg Carbin

(Twitter page)

Greg is the Warning Coordination Meteorologist at the Storm Prediction Center. So, he’s pretty close to king of severe weather. He’s a must follow in spring and summer, but you’ll also notice he tweets a lot of cool stuff that’s not tornado related.

Harold Brooks

(Twitter page)

If you’re into tornado stats — like me — you have to follow Harold Brooks. One of the premier severe weather climatology meteorologists out there. You’ll become smarter reading his tweets.

Jason Cooley

(Twitter page)

Jason Cooley chases a lot. I mean, a lot. Every time there’s a storm he seems to be somewhere near it. Hopefully he keeps on going, because we all want to see what’s going on out there.

Jason Prentice

(Twitter page)

Jason Prentice covers all types of weather, but he’s one of those severe weather stats and imagery gurus you want to follow. He’s got his finger on the pulse of what’s happening and where, not just in spring but all year ’round.

Johnny Kelly

(Twitter page)

Johnny covers all types of weather and may never sleep. Combine the two and there’s not a lot he misses, including severe weather and tornado coverage. One of those feeds you’re probably worse off for not following at any time of year — definitely during tornado season.

Mike Dross

(Twitter page)

Dross is the president of Wright-Weather.com, a long-running model and analysis web site. He shares great model/radar imagery in the run up to and during tornado events. He’s an invaluable resource in learning what to look for in any weather situation.

Mike Smith

(Twitter page)

Mike Smith is one of the severe weather field’s foremost experts, a storm chaser and friend of chasers. He’s a member of the management team at AccuWeather Enterprise Solutions and author of several books, including the renowned Warnings: The True Story of How Science Tamed the Weather.

Morgan Barry

(Twitter page)

Morgan is a NWS meteorologist in the southern United States. She covers weather of all types, but is often at the front of tweeting and retweeting important information from across her network of colleagues. When tornadoes are possible, factual news matters.

Nick Wiltgen

(Twitter page)

Wiltgen is part of TWC’s expansive and creative digital media team, and he knows his severe weather. A native of the Plains, his tornado knowledge comes shining through, at least when he has the time to tweet from his own account (see TWCBreaking below).

NWS Norman

(Twitter page)

Personally, I follow two NWS local forecast offices — the D.C. one (because, duh) and NWS Norman. While their focus is on Oklahoma, their tornado information often spans a much larger area both via current thinking and historical information.

Patrick Marsh

(Twitter page)

Patrick was scooped up by the Storm Prediction Center in recent years, and for good reason. He’s basically a severe weather wizard. Anyone who is young and studies tornadoes should strive to be like him, though good luck with that I say!

Sarah Dillingham

(Twitter page)

Sarah is a producer with The Weather Channel and a researcher working alongside the legendary Dr. Greg Forbes. While she covers weather across the gamut, her severe weather knowledge is clear as day during stormy situations.

SevereStudios

(Twitter page)

SevereStudios is a one stop shop for any type of big weather, but they’re at their best covering springtime storms. They bring a bevvy of chasers together as well, with streaming video and more.

Storm Prediction Center

(Twitter page)

The number one pros when it comes to storms of any kind. Not following them would be pretty dumb. It’s a quick way to get the latest on upcoming watches, actual watches, and a whole lot more. If you don’t follow, you probably don’t belong in the severe weather aficionado club.

Tornado Titans

(Twitter page)

First class imagery, plus a dedication to interacting and teaching. Based in Norman, Ok. they’re always on the good storms. Plus they have several teams who often hit different areas, meaning the odds of a total group bust go down.

TWCBreaking

(Twitter page)

Setting the standard even outside television is something TWC is known for. Their social presence shows off their skills. This is one to follow all year, but it’ll also get you what you need to know on tornado threats as they arise.

Us

(Twitter page)

Yeah, we think you should follow us if you don’t! Not just the main USTornadoes account, but each of the writers as we’re all tornado geeks. Here are the links: Mark Ellinwood, Brendan Heberton, James Hyde, Ian Livingston, Tony Lyza, Kathryn Prociv, and Katie Wheatley.

P.S., It was hard to narrow down and I left some folks off who should also get a follow. I focused on those who heavily lean talking about tornadoes and not just in their own backyards. Our whole follow list is full of great folks!

In coming days we’ll be paying particular attention to lists breaking down meteorologists by region, including the southern Plains, the Mid South, the Lakes and Midwest, and the Southeast. The tornado chasers list is also worth a peek.

The following two tabs change content below.
My Twitter profileMy Google+ profileMy Flickr profile

Ian Livingston

Information lead and forecaster for the Washington Post's Capital Weather Gang.
My Twitter profileMy Google+ profileMy Flickr profile

Latest posts by Ian Livingston (see all)

Similar Posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.