Houston storm chaser heading to Florida for Hurricane Ian
HOUSTON - A storm chaser from Houston is packing up his bags and heading to Florida for Hurricane Ian.
"I’m packing up my rain boots," said Logan Schaeffer. "That box is full of food, drinks, and snacks."
Schaeffer is a meteorologist who has a passion of chasing powerful storms. Over the last two years, he has documented tornados and been in the eye of several hurricanes.
"It’s exhausting, it’s exhilarating, it’s thrilling, but it’s also humbling too to see the destruction first hand," said Schaeffer. "I just want to show people what it looks like in real life. It just puts it in their mind."
Schaeffer left Houston Monday afternoon and plans to drive roughly 1,000 miles to the Tampa, Florida area. The storm chaser is bringing extra fuel, water, and food with him just in case he gets stuck.
"I’m not crazy because I take all of the precautions," said Schaeffer.
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According to Schaeffer, he plans to pick up a couple of other storm chasers while driving to Florida. They’re making the round-trip drive in a rental car.
"I told [the rental car company] I was traveling and I got the max insurance, and I might be going to Florida, and there might be a hurricane coming," said Schaeffer.
A state of emergency has been issued in Florida. Much of the state can expect tornados, 100 mile per hour winds, and a dangerous storm surge.
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Schaefer says he plans to document his trip on social media. The meteorologist hopes his videos and posts will help people understand how dangerous hurricanes can be.
"I do it because there’s just something about seeing the power of Mother Nature," said Schaefer. "It’s also a good way to see the power and damage, and to tell people back home, this could happen to you. So, take every alert seriously."