by Tl Reeve
Brittney frowned. “How long on the tracking?”
Lars’ brows furrowed. “Do you remember the storms from 2011 in Alabama and Mississippi?”
“I do.” Because of the way the storms popped up, there wasn’t a right or wrong place to be. She’d been in Tupelo, catching a few hours sleep after driving from Oklahoma, when the long tracking tornado went over Hackleburg in the wee hours of the morning. At the time, she’d been short on funds and doing everything on her own.
“It puts Tuscaloosa and Moore, Oklahoma to shame.” The serious look on his face said everything she needed to know. These people were in danger.
“How much time do we have?” The clouds were darkening as they stood there, and the wind had gone still.
“Ten, maybe twenty minutes at most.”
“Call the NWS for Omaha-Valley and tell them what you’re seeing. If you see it, they are too,” Brittney said. “Where do we need to be?”
Shiro joined her along with Wylder as Lars stepped away to make the phone call. “We’re in a good spot here.” He spread the map on the hood of Lars’ vehicle. “If Lars’ data is correct, it’s going to make a direct hit on the town. If we get any closer, we’re going to be inside the tornado.”
She glanced over her shoulder. Rai stood behind them videoing everything with his phone. The boy was pensive and a little pale. His first real tornado chase. He wasn’t prepared. “Do you have any questions for us?”
Rai jerked out of whatever stupor he’d been in. “Uh, what about the kids? In-In the school?”
“They'll be the priority. As soon as the danger passes, we'll go there first and help search.” She walked toward him. “Would you like to get a look at the map and which way we think it'll track?”
“Sure.” Rai followed Brittney over to the SUV. “So, you'll see here, we have the radar up and tracking the storm. Over here on Shiro's tablet is the map of Clark and the surrounding areas. As the radar loops, the tablet is putting the data into a program that future casts it in real-time so we know within five miles where it will head.”
“How close to right are you on these things?” Rai asked.
Brittney bit her bottom lip. “We're usually within about a two to three-mile radius of where we think the tornado will touch down.”
“So, it should hit right over the town itself or within two or three miles east or west of it?” Rai stepped closer with his phone to get a better shot of the map and all of Brittney’s equipment.
“Yes.” Brittney showed Rai the next town that could be affected by the storm as Lars rejoined them. “What did they say?”
“They a—”
The tornado sirens went off as did the emergency broadcast on their radios. The people who were in the diner made a mad dash to the back of the establishment. Brittney gathered up the maps while Lars grabbed his laptop. They had to seek shelter before it was too late.
“What now?” Rai said as the sirens continued to blare.
“Lars and Shiro will position the vehicles in an area where they’ll be protected against the storm, or as best as they can be while Shiro films the tornado from the van,” she answered.
“He's staying out in it?” Rai blinked at her as the first gust of wind hit them, pushing them backward.
“Yes, the van is equipped to ride out tornado activity.” She shrugged. “We learned a few things over the years from a few of the elite storm chasers. Shiro and Lars will be fine. Trust me.”
Rai stared at their white van and swallowed hard. “I trust you.”
“Good. We need to get inside.” Brittney glanced up at the sky. The clouds were lowering and turning an x-ray-green color. “Get this for your video.” She pointed upward.
“Holy shit,” Rai muttered, pointing his phone upward.
The rain came first, then the hail. “We have to go in, now.” Brittney pulled Rai into the restaurant and back toward the kitchen where she was sure everyone else went. She spied the open door on the floor seconds before Wylder popped her head out and grinned. “Rai, here.”
They stepped down into the small space and glanced around at the crowd with them. Today their lives were going to change. Most of them would lose their house. Some might lose a family member. There had to be a better way to track tornadoes. Sure, the technology was getting better, but it still needed a boost. A twelve-hour window with pinpoint accuracy could be the difference between a schoolhouse full of kids crumbling or shelter being open to protect them. She couldn't dwell on it though, as soon as the weather passed, they'd have to start the recovery/rescue.
“You’re one of those storm chasers aren’t you?” a man asked, pulling off his hat to rub his balding head.
“I am.” Brittney introduced herself. “I'm Brittney hart. This is my son, Rai and my assistant Wylder along with Spike, our search and rescue bloodhound.”
“So, you called in the storm then?” one of the waitresses asked as she fiddled with the strings of her apron tied in front of her.
“We did,” Brittney answered.
“Shouldn’t you be out there then?” the same man hedged.
“Two of my team members are. They’re doing all the work at the moment.” She tucked Rai into her side. “This is his first storm and we wanted to keep him safe until he got the hang of it.”
“You’re embarrassing me,” Rai whispered. “I can take care of myself.”
The waitress chuckled before wiping her eyes. “I have a son and daughter about your age, they’re twins. They’re at the school right now.”
“Ours too,” another woman said.
“Same here,” a man replied, raising his hand.
Rai looked to Brittney. “The school has a plan. When we're given the all-clear we will help you find your children, I promise.” Her son groaned and pulled at his ear, seconds before Brittney winced as pressure-filled her ears. “It's close. Brace yourself.”
The sound of a locomotive winding up its engine filled the small space. Brittney grabbed onto Rai and Wylder grabbed onto them, placing Spike between their feet. The intensity of the noise built until the floor began to rumble as though the train were moving. Above them, glass crashed, and tables scrubbed across the floor. Wood cracked and creaked before squealing as it was ripped from the building. Brittney closed her eyes and said a little prayer for Lars and Shiro’s protection. She knew they would be safe, but as the destruction continued around them, the thought had crossed her mind they were way too close. The violent whistle of the wind whipped and twirled around them in a catastrophic dance.
Soft sobs were met with whispered platitudes. Soon it would be over. Soon they could leave and find their children or loved ones. The door above their heads rattled and shook, lifting ever so slightly then falling with a loud thud. Then, everything went quiet—eerily so. One of the patrons went for the stairs, but Wylder and Brittney stopped him.
“We’re in the vortex,” Brittney said. “You open the door and we’re all as good as dead.”
The man stepped back. “Are you sure?”
Brittney nodded. “Very sure. It’s about to get rough again.”
The rumble in the ground built again this time stronger, more violent. Brittney’s grip tightened on Rai. Alarms blared and propane tanks exploded. Brittney cringed as the ground rocked back and forth. Time slowed, becoming a snail’s pace as the tornado whirled around them churning up everything in its path. She didn’t know how long they were down in the little shelter before the noise quieted and the trembling stopped.
“I think we’re good,” Wylder said. “I’ll take a look. Everyone, stand back.”
Brittney shifted Rai toward the rear of the room while Wylder opened the hatch. The trap door hung on something and Wylder gave a mighty shove, throwing the lid backward. Even from where Brittney waited, she could see the diner had been destroyed. Wooden two by fours were embedded in the freezer, while the roof was completely gone. Back off to the west, the sun peeked out from the clouds as if nothing had happened.
One by one they climbed out of the shelter and maneuvered their way out of the remains of the building. The destruction was vast and devastating. Dirt was churned up where the tornado cut a path across the ground. The winds were strong enough it even ate through the asphalt. Powerline were down across the streets while the poles were sheared off at their base. Lars' SUV had been tucked into a corner and remained virtually untouched. He'd need a new driver side mirror, but for the most part, he could drive it out.
Brittney glanced up as a white blob rolled down the road toward them and a sigh of relief passed her lips. Shiro and Lars were okay. Shiro parked as close to them as he could before getting out and jogging the rest of the way. The smile on his face said everything.
“We did it!” Shiro shouted. “We got the data.” He wrapped Brittney in a hug. “Are you guys okay? Anyone injured?”
“We’re fine, a little worse for wear but we’re good. How does it look down the road?” She pointed toward the school knowing there were parents in their group.
“The school is intact, it missed it by about five hundred feet. It doesn't mean there aren't some broken windows or some other type of damage, but the kids should be safe,” Shiro said.
“We already reached out to the police and county sheriffs they’re sending people out now from surrounding counties,” Lars added. “But, Brittney, the tornado is still on the ground.”
She figured as much. “Did you let NWS know?”
“Right before I called for assistance,” Lars said. “You should know another cell is coming. It should miss here though. The last data I was able to get indicated it would hit a bit north of here.”
Brittney glanced around the area. They could leave and try to catch the next storm, but after being closed in with the residents of the town, she couldn’t leave them. They were going to need help with the cleanup. As it stood with the size of the path of destruction, people were going to be hurt, and people were also going to need help.
“We're staying. Clark needs us,” she said. “We can get the next storm. For now, let's assist those people so they can get to the school to find their kids.”
“Those who need to go to the school, follow me,” Shiro said then pointed to Lars. “Those who need to get somewhere else, follow Lars.”
As they split up, Wylder went with Brittney and Rai to the van. Since there were three parents, they could sit up near the front while she sat in back with the equipment. They didn’t have to go far, but it would give her time to start reading over the data they’d received from the tornado. She glanced up and caught Rai recording her again. She’d been afraid the tornado would shock him, and he’d demand to go home. Instead, he went right back to work.
“Was it what you thought it would be?” her son asked.
“It was, give or take a little,” she answered then waved him forward. “This is the preliminary data. The blue you see around the hook is debris. It means there was stuff lofted into the air due to the speed of the wind and the damage from the tornado. It’s all raw data right now, but soon when we’ve assisted everyone, we can read it and write up a report.”
“Do you know how big it was on the Fujita Scale?”
She shook her head. “The National Weather Service will figure it out most likely tomorrow when the weather has passed. We’ll give them a copy of our data and the video from the tornado and they’ll do the rest.”
“If you had to guess though?” he pressed.
She frowned. “An EF-3 or EF-4. I hate saying anything, because I can’t see the whole path of destruction, but by the bits we are seeing, it’s bad.”
They pulled up to the school and the children were being brought out to the side lawn that was void of any type of debris they could be hurt on. Some of the students had scrapes and bruises but nothing major which was a relief. Brittney opened the sliding door and inched away so the parents who’d been in the diner with them could exit and find their kids. As she stared at the scene, memories of Moore, Oklahoma filled her mind. The sheer panic she felt. The pit in her stomach that made it hard to breathe. She understood those moms and dads they helped get to their children. She also knew they probably lost everything too.
“We’ll start here,” she said. “I’ll get a few seconds of the tornado from different angles sent to the local news stations and then we’ll help with clean up and search and rescue.”
“Spike and I will go sit with the kids. He’ll enjoy the attention,” Wylder said. “You want to come with me, Rai?”
“Can I?” He looked to his mom for approval.
“Go,” Brittney said. “Render aid where you can and listen where you can’t. Sometimes just a shoulder is the best medicine.”
“Thanks, mom,” Rai said, following Wylder.
“Don’t film the kids,” Brittney reminded him. “You have to have parental consent.”
Rai gave her the thumbs up as he slipped into the crowd. That kid... He took everything in stride. She glanced at Shiro who stood near the front of the van talking to the man they’d brought with them. After whatever they said, the man stuck his hand out for Shiro to shake, then he was back in the van with her.
“I need to know everything about this storm. Tell me from the beginning.”
Chapter 4
Dexter stood behind the nursing station desk and placed another chart onto the pile. He was already six hours into his twelve-hour shift, and he was ready to go home. There were days when the shift flew by and there were days when it crawled.
Today, it crawled.
There was an upside to a slow night—the majority of their patients were in and out without much fanfare and it gave the nurses time to breathe—unlike when they were treating firefighters and civilians for burns due to the Big Bend fire. Not only had he been slap dab in the middle of those flames, doing his level best to help those injured, he’d also gone home, cleaned up and drove straight to the hospital to continue his work.
“Discharged?” Angie, one of the other head nurses on the floor came up beside him. They’d been hired together and together they’d whipped the group of nurses they had on their floor into shape, making it one of the most effective, patient-friendly ERs in the region.
“Yep.” Dexter nodded. “They needed a few stitches.”
“Good.” Angie took a seat. “We have rooms six through twelve available now.” She glanced out over the waiting room. “And we’re almost empty. I’d say we’re doing all right.”
Dexter agreed. “Some days it pays to be this efficient.”
Angie laughed. “You know it. So, how did the VFD barbecue go?”
“It went,” he said, taking a seat beside her. “We brought in a good bit of donations and it’ll help us build the new garage for our trucks and equipment.”
“Good. I wanted to be there, but I was here,” she replied with a sigh. “The surrounding community needs more people like you guys.”
He shrugged it off as he glanced up at the television in the main area of the waiting room. Debris had been strewn across roads and parking lots. Buildings were toppled and cars were flipped over. As the ticker at the bottom of the screen rolled by, he read it. Clark, NE, the site of where an EF-4 Tornado touched down at 11 am this morning. Search and rescue crews are combing the area to find victims of this tragic devastation. The death toll stands at five, their names are being withheld until identification can be made and their families can be notified.
The report went to a split-screen. One side had the tornado while the other continued to show pictures of the aftermath. The stunning view was heart-wrenching, to say the least. What caught his attention though, was the name credited with the footage, Brittney Hart. When he'd called her, and she'd said she couldn't talk. This was why. He shook his head. Damn, she was impressive. The woman who stole his ability to reason stood before the microphones to talk to reporters. He grabbed the controller off the desk and turned it up. Angie cocked a brow and he shrugged. The announcer said they would begin shortly and damned if h
e didn’t sit on the edge of his seat.
“You know her?” Angie prodded.
“Sort of, yeah,” he replied. “She came to the benefit for the fire department.”
“Ah. So, she’s a storm chaser?”
“I guess so.”
“Interesting.” Angie turned her chair a bit to face the flat-screen television. “She's pretty.”
“Don’t start, Angie.”
“What?” She drew out the word. “I can appreciate a woman’s gorgeous body or her amazing hair and skin.”
“She’s dirty because she’s been through a tornado,” Dexter pointed out.
“And?”
“You’re incorrigible,” he muttered.
“My name is Brittney Hart I am a NOAA certified meteorologist and an extreme storm chaser along with the members of my team. Last night, we spotted the potential for these particular storm cells to blow up throughout today which could lead to potentially catastrophic damage through the region. On our way to Lincoln, where we originally thought these supercells would pop, we noticed on radar a definitive shift in the track of the front which led it into a more conducive airstream. We changed our course of intercept and alerted local NWS to send out the urgent warning. Approximately, ten minutes after our arrival the tornado struck Clark. Had there been a more advanced notification system in place, the town could have been spared lives being lost. That is why teams like mine and others exist. This is why year after year we are on the road gathering data, helping communities, and trying to update warning systems that are meant to keep the public safe. Thankfully, this tornado missed Clark School, however, that's how tornadoes are. They can miss one house or one building, but they'll destroy your home or your friend's business. There's no rhyme or reason to them. Now, if you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer a few.”
One of the reporters reached out with his microphone. “Can you tell us if there is any more severe weather in the forecast for today?”
She nodded. “There is, unfortunately. As you can see, with the clouds parting and the sun coming through, it can lead to daytime heating, which when the next line of storms come down the pike, the shift in pressure can cause another outbreak.”
