Public Eye: When chasing storms, the risks aren't all about the weather
Caitlyn Mims felt inspired by characters in the film "Twister" who seemed fearless as they chased tornadoes across the countryside.
That inspiration led her to become a severe storm tourist, paying thousands of dollars to a company for a dream vacation. But three days into the chase last month, Mims and other members of her tour were still sitting in an Oklahoma City hotel, trying to convince the tour operator to hit the road.
Mims wasn't the only customer of Ultimate Storm Chasing Tours to reach out about a bad experience this year. A few weeks earlier, Erica Ogden was on a separate trip that she described in an online review as a "scam."
Ogden and Mims, along with others who wrote reviews and confirmed their experiences to Public Eye, said the once-in-a-lifetime storm-chasing experience fell flat because of poor accommodations and vehicles, a lack of urgency in chasing severe weather, lackluster communication from their tour guide and an unprofessional attitude when they confronted him about their concerns.
Tour operator Brian Barnes, who said his company has a two-decade history of leading storm chasing tours, has responded to their concerns with complaints of his own about lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and weather patterns that simply didn't produce the desired severe storms.
The problem: Bad vibes, unmet expectations
It's not unusual (or even newsworthy) when a customer has a bad experience with a business. It happens. But what drew us to this story were the similar complaints from individuals who went on separate trips in May and June this year.
Mims' tour was scheduled to begin on a Wednesday. There wasn't any weather to chase, so they were taken to a state park. Things didn't improve on Thursday, she said. But on Friday, storms began to brew in Colorado.
"We eventually had to convince him like, 'Hey, we want to go to the storm in Colorado. Please just take us. I don't care if it's just rain, we want to go,'" Mims recalled. "We made him drive to Colorado that day. And the storm was pretty cool."
She ultimately felt so uneasy with her tour guide and disappointed with her trip that she bailed. While in Colorado, Mims met a tour group from a different company who let her join for the rest of her vacation.
Ogden toured with Barnes in May as a birthday present to herself. She was disappointed when her group sat for days in a hotel while the company's vehicles were in the shop. She also complained about poor communication before and during the trip.
"I figured they were probably a little disorganized, but their website was so impressive," Ogden said. "I sat on my 40th birthday in the middle of nowhere, watching a TV that didn't even have cable and went and bought myself a cupcake, you know, to celebrate my birthday."
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Ogden also recorded video of an argument between Barnes and other tour guests who felt unsatisfied by the lack of activities and overall experience. Their level of frustration (from both sides) is clear in the recording.
Mims spent $2,795 for a week-long tour but hasn't been refunded. Ogden spent $4,125 for an 11-day tour, although her bank did credit 85% of her cost after she disputed the charges.
What we found out: The tour guide responds
Barnes responded to our own inquiry about his guests' concerns, writing detailed, lengthy responses to our questions. He described the June excursion as a tour with a short time-frame, meaning that the options for travel were limited.
"Driving long distances between distant target areas would have compromised the tour experience," Barnes wrote in response to Mims' complaint about seeking out the Colorado storm.
He also claimed that navigating the post-pandemic world has been a challenge for not only his business, but for the hospitality and leisure industry that his company relies on. Several guests described sketchy experiences with their hotels that were far below their expectations; in response, Barnes said the industry has faced hiring challenges after the pandemic "resulting in a decline in the overall service quality."
He also cast blame on increased homeless populations near airport hotels, which he said could trigger a negative reaction among his more affluent customers.
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"However as a company, we are dedicated to continuous improvement, and feedback from our customers plays a crucial role in helping us achieve that goal," Barnes wrote.
Along with his response to our questions, Barnes suggested Public Eye contact two other people who he said went on tours this year, each of whom painted a different, more positive picture. One of those individuals, Nic Babb, said he's a repeat customer and described his excursion in May (the same one as Ogden) as the "Great Karen Chase of 2023."
"This is not something I have ever witnessed with a group. They were not understanding, to say the least," Babb said, adding that it seemed like some members of the group blamed Barnes for the lousy weather. "From there, some of the group continued to hold that grudge, which I find incredibly unfair."
Barnes' tour website is light on details about his own credentials and background. However, Public Eye found an archive of a now-defunct site promoting photos and videos from his chases. According to that bio, Barnes studied atmospheric science with the U.S. Air Force where he served as a weather forecaster. Later, he joined Mayes County Emergency Management as a storm spotter and public information officer, and also worked for the severe weather team at Tulsa's ABC news affiliate.
Both sites note that he organized his first tour days after the tornado that ripped through central Oklahoma on May 3, 1999.
Public Eye asked Barnes to confirm this information, but he did not respond.
The complaints made by tour guests this year aren't the only ones on file for Barnes' company. Another person complained to the Better Business Bureau that their $2,400 prepayment check mailed before the tour never got cashed, even though they mailed it weeks before the tour was supposed to begin.
"I was getting worried since my flight was scheduled in less than four days and I had received no information about where to meet the group on the first day," the unidentified customer wrote.
According to the complaint, the customer eventually stopped payment and canceled their flight and hotel reservations. Barnes also did not refund the customer's $750 deposit.
Another BBB complaint accused Barnes failing to refund a deposit after the tour was canceled due to low interest. Barnes did not respond to that complaint. The company's BBB gives the company a rating of F.
Resolution: Finding the right severe storm tour guide for you
It can be hard to judge a book by its cover, or in this case, a tour guide by his website. But if you're in the market for a severe weather tour, there are some things you can look out for.
To get a third-party opinion about storm tourism best practices, Public Eye reached out to Nick Drieschman, who has run his own tour company for nine years. He said customers should seek out online reviews before booking with a company; testimonials on the company's own website aren't good enough.
He suggested checking out StormChasingUSA.com, which conducts independent reviews of weather tours and lists details about upcoming schedules and pricing. The tours listed on that site range in price from $290 to $570 a day.
"They can also look up the person who's running the business or the guides themselves to see whether these people are actual storm chasers within their own right, who are professionals within the industry," he said. "So it does take a little bit of research to really find the right companies out there."
Drieschman also said tour operators should set appropriate expectations so guests don't get bored or frustrated during their vacation.
"People have this idea in their mind that every tornado is going to be a 'Wizard of Oz,' beautiful gray tornado that snakes down — not all tornadoes are like that," he said.
It's even within the realm of possibility that a tour never gets to see a tornado. Again, weather doesn't care about your vacation schedule.
Severe storm tourists should also be aware of the risks involved and make sure that your guide is, too. Intercepting severe weather carries its own inherently dangerous risks, both for obvious and not-so-obvious reasons.
Tornadoes can move unpredictably, as proven during the 2013 El Reno tornado that claimed the lives of three scientific researchers. Four years later, professional storm chasers collided with an amateur chaser at an intersection, leading to another three deaths. Last year, three University of Oklahoma meteorology students died in a car crash on the way back from chasing storms in Kansas.
Even the National Weather Service in Norman doesn't recommend chasing storms, but concedes that booking a tour is probably safer than going out on your own.
"Having an experienced team, making sure that you're having meetings with both your team and your guests, and having a safety plan and a call to action — all tour companies should have that," Drieschman said.
Got a problem with an unresponsive bureaucracy or a sketchy business? Public Eye might be able to help. Email us at publiceye@oklahoman.com.
This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Vacations ruined: Storm chasing tour in Oklahoma City criticized
