3 Storm Chasers Die in Texas Crash

They collided while pursuing tornado
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 29, 2017 1:50 AM CDT
3 Storm Chasers Die in Texas Crash
Texas Department of Public Safety troopers investigate the crash near Spur, Texas.   (Ellysa Gonzalez/Lubbock Avalanche-Journal via AP)

Three storm chasers were killed in West Texas on Tuesday—and it wasn't by the tornado they were pursuing. The Texas Department of Public Safety says the three men were killed in a collision at a rural crossroads near the town of Spur, around 70 miles east of Lubbock, CNN reports. Kelley Williamson, 57, and Randall Yarnell, 55, both of Cassville, Mo., and Corbin Jaeger, a 25-year-old from Peoria, Ariz., were killed when the Missouri men's Chevrolet Suburban SUV ran a stop sign and hit Jaeger's Jeep. They were traveling in different directions amid a storm system that brought heavy rain and tornadoes to the area, the AP reports.

Williamson, who was driving, and Yarnell were contractors for the Weather Channel. "Kelley and Randy were beloved members of the weather community," the channel said in a statement. "We are saddened by this loss and our deepest sympathies go out to the families and loved ones of all involved." FOX 4 reports that Williamson was streaming on YouTube at the time of the accident. The video ends as he runs the stop sign. The National Weather Service says the storm system will shift eastward Wednesday, with tornadoes possible in East Texas, Arkansas, and Louisiana. (More storm chasers stories.)

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