Storm Chasers Killed In Oklahoma Tornado Spark Questions About TV Shows, Exploitation, Safety

On Friday, fifteen more people died from a twister near El Reno, Okla. The tornado was erratic and jumpy - and when it had blown through, it left behind at least twelve dead. They were drivers who got caught in rush-hour traffic while fleeing, and three storm chasers.

Some of the confirmed fatalities include veteran tornado researcher Tim Samaras, 55; his son, Paul, 24; and colleague Carl Young, 45. The report of how they died is, even three days after the incident, muddled. There's video of a mangled vehicle that had been crushed beyond recognition, and not much else.

The incident has rocked the community of storm chasers, who mourn the three veterans. It's also lead to questions about competition within the storm chasing community, safety, and the exploitation of chasers.

John Francis, vice president for research, conservation and exploration at the National Geographic Society, worried that people on highways in pursuit of tornadoes may have led to the fatalities on Friday.

"It reminds me a little bit of Everest," Francis said Monday. "When you have a few people climbing, it's fine. If you have a bunch of people stacked up and a bad situation occurs, it can be devastating. . . . What is an important science practice and one that is informative for the public can suddenly become an opportunity for disaster."

The Geographic Society has given Samaras 18 grants over the last decade. Samaras was not thought to be take unnecessary risks-in fact, he was known for being safe, according to CNN Meteorologist Chad Myers. Samaras specialized in placing instruments and probes, often handmade, into the path of twisters to measure pressure drops, wind velocities, and other tracking measures.

"There's just no one safer than Tim. Tim, he would never put himself in danger," Myers said. "He certainly wouldn't put his son in danger."

During the Moore, Okla. tornado on May 20, he was chasing another tornado. He got within about 500 feet of it. It went over four miles of open country and created, according to Samaras, "a near-perfect data set."

The tornado near El Reno caught many civilians and storm chasers off guard. Weather Channel meteorologist Mike Bettes and two photographers had their SUV tossed in the air by the twister. Austin Anderson, the driver of the van, which had the channel's logo and said "Tornado Hunt", will need surgery for several broken bones.

"Hopefully our mishap will teach us all to respect the weather & be responsible & safe at all costs. I thought I was doing the right thing, but obviously I wasn't. Lesson learned the hard way," Bettes wrote on his Facebook page.

Two years ago, Bettes was worried warned that some chasers were getting too reckless.

"An increasing trend I see happening is chasers try to get as close as possible to one-up their competition and cash in on dramatic video," he said. "And the one thing I always hear from professional chasers is how safety is their number one concern and warning the public is their number one priority. Me? I call BS on that one. While you're being hit by debris and being flipped by your car by a tornado, you're not very concerned about your safety or anyone else's. You're setting a bad example for a young generation of chasers who follow your lead."

The tornado that killed Samaras was covered by rain and hard to see clearly. Motorists thought they could drive away - at least one meteorologist had suggested it. But Interstates 35 and 40 became parking lots. And the direction changed quickly Bettes described the experience as the scariest moment of his life.

"I think the direction of movement changed quickly. And I think there were a lot of people out there that, you know, ended up getting stuck in positions we didn't want to be in," he said.