Uploaded June 2024 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
June 2, 1985 was a big high risk severe weather day in the Central Plains and specifically in Oklahoma. Storm chasers Jim Leonard and Chuck Robertson teamed up and ventured southwest towards Kiowa County near Hobart. They encountered a tornado warned supercell thunderstorm with a reported "tornado on the ground" by local weather spotters east of the small crossroads community of Gotebo, Oklahoma. Upon driving east they soon realized the "tornado" was actually smoke from a fire caused by lightning striking an oil derrick pump with smoke that was being ingested into the updraft base.
At the same time from a different angle, the TOTO [Totable Tornado Observatory] crew from the National Severe Storms Laboratory observed the same sight. Documentary filmmakers Don Lenzer and Richard Lerner, whom were riding along, captured the same sight featured in this video along with Dr. Lou Wicker's mistaken comment of "tornado, tornado, I think we have a tornado" featured prominently in the 1985 PBS NOVA 'Tornado!' documentary. This specific event, of which also was mistaken by Jim Leonard and Chuck Robertson within this video, eventually became known around the Norman meteorology circuit as "The Gotebo Fooler". It's a great example of how experienced storm chasers and meteorologists can be had by nature.
The 1985 PBS NOVA 'Tornado' original broadcast documentary can be viewed here in full: youtu.be/0sBpR7LlmLU
Later that same day, Jim Leonard and Chuck Robertson recorded a spectacular hail and lightning event with the high precipitation supercell that continued east. That video became one of the most utilized "storm chase" videos in the mid-1980's, as there were very few high quality [videotapes] around at that point. The hail and lightning encounter, which significantly damaged Jim's vehicle, is probably one of the better known sequences to many long time severe weather video viewers. Many watching this will likely remember it from the Tornado Video Classics video series or from broadcast television versions through the late 1990's.
This is most of the raw video from June 2, 1985, provided by Jim Leonard and Chuck Robertson. Jim Leonard passed away on November 3, 2014.
Videography by Jim Leonard, © 1985, All Rights Reserved. This video along with many other photographs, films and videotapes provided from Jim Leonard over the years are physically preserved for posterity at the Southwest Special Collections Library at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas.
June 2, 1985 was a big high risk severe weather day in the Central Plains and specifically in Oklahoma. Storm chasers Jim Leonard and Chuck Robertson teamed up and ventured southwest towards Kiowa County near Hobart. They encountered a tornado warned supercell thunderstorm with a reported "tornado on the ground" by local weather spotters east of the small crossroads community of Gotebo, Oklahoma. Upon driving east they soon realized the "tornado" was actually smoke from a fire caused by lightning striking an oil derrick pump with smoke that was being ingested into the updraft base.
At the same time from a different angle, the TOTO [Totable Tornado Observatory] crew from the National Severe Storms Laboratory observed the same sight. Documentary filmmakers Don Lenzer and Richard Lerner, whom were riding along, captured the same sight featured in this video along with Dr. Lou Wicker's mistaken comment of "tornado, tornado, I think we have a tornado" featured prominently in the 1985 PBS NOVA 'Tornado!' documentary. This specific event, of which also was mistaken by Jim Leonard and Chuck Robertson within this video, eventually became known around the Norman meteorology circuit as "The Gotebo Fooler". It's a great example of how experienced storm chasers and meteorologists can be had by nature.
The 1985 PBS NOVA 'Tornado' original broadcast documentary can be viewed here in full: youtu.be/0sBpR7LlmLU
Later that same day, Jim Leonard and Chuck Robertson recorded a spectacular hail and lightning event with the high precipitation supercell that continued east. That video became one of the most utilized "storm chase" videos in the mid-1980's, as there were very few high quality [videotapes] around at that point. The hail and lightning encounter, which significantly damaged Jim's vehicle, is probably one of the better known sequences to many long time severe weather video viewers. Many watching this will likely remember it from the Tornado Video Classics video series or from broadcast television versions through the late 1990's.
This is most of the raw video from June 2, 1985, provided by Jim Leonard and Chuck Robertson. Jim Leonard passed away on November 3, 2014.
Videography by Jim Leonard, © 1985, All Rights Reserved. This video along with many other photographs, films and videotapes provided from Jim Leonard over the years are physically preserved for posterity at the Southwest Special Collections Library at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas.
![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.")
