Uploaded November 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
On Tuesday, May 13, 1980 a destructive tornado swirled through the city of Kalamazoo. Three hours after the fact, this special report on WKZO Channel 3 [now WWMT] was broadcast at 7-7:30 p.m. Then Kalamazoo mayor Ed Annen Jr. made an on set appearance to address the city and surrounding municipalities at the top of the newscast, followed up with first hand reports from reporters and eyewitnesses. This was the first broadcast of the now fairly well known videotape recorded by Ted Ruble at The Sound Room in downtown at the corner of West Main and Westnedge. It was rare at the time to have two different perspectives of a tornado on videotape and WKZO was the first station in the nation to make that happen.
Enjoy this visual blast from Kalamazoo's local television past!
Additional information on the May 13, 1980 tornadoes: 1980kalamazootornado.org
On Tuesday, May 13, 1980 a destructive tornado swirled through the city of Kalamazoo. Three hours after the fact, this special report on WKZO Channel 3 [now WWMT] was broadcast at 7-7:30 p.m. Then Kalamazoo mayor Ed Annen Jr. made an on set appearance to address the city and surrounding municipalities at the top of the newscast, followed up with first hand reports from reporters and eyewitnesses. This was the first broadcast of the now fairly well known videotape recorded by Ted Ruble at The Sound Room in downtown at the corner of West Main and Westnedge. It was rare at the time to have two different perspectives of a tornado on videotape and WKZO was the first station in the nation to make that happen.
Enjoy this visual blast from Kalamazoo's local television past!
Additional information on the May 13, 1980 tornadoes: 1980kalamazootornado.org
![Raging Planet: Tornado [1997] The Discovery Channel](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/wbgAj0F212Q/mqdefault.jpg "Raging Planet: Tornado [1997] The Discovery Channel
Raging Planet: Tornado is a 45 minute special that was produced by UK based Pioneer Productions and aired on The Discovery Channel in late 1997 and early 1998. It features many infamous tornado events and then ongoing research efforts from the early through mid 1990s and was one of the more popular tornado documentaries produced in the later part of the decade.
For references, the Pioneer Productions crew that was traveling and chasing with Jim Leonard and others, along with the mini research helicopter, are featured in this May 31, 1996 Kansas tornado chase day as documented by the late Jim Leonard: https://youtu.be/hjPSPAPPmjg
© 1997 Pioneer Productions, All Rights Reserved.")
