How storm chasers find their perfect Prairie storms

Storm chasers have been a little busy on the Prairieslately.

Greg Johnson, a photographer fortheTornado Huntersstorm-chasing team,said the last five years on the Prairieshave been "an absolute tornado recession," but for the last week the skies over Alberta and Saskatchewan havebeen more active than usual.

"It's just nice for us to not have to drive 3,000 kilometresto see something."

Buthow exactly do these chasers find their storms?

It all starts with watching weather models and tryingto predict trends, saysNevindeMillianowith Prairie Storm Chasers.

"About two days out we say, 'Yup, OKthis is probably chaseable' and then the day before we begin to pick our targets," saiddeMilliano.

"We head out in the morning and once we've done that, we know what conditions are in play, so we know what directions they are moving, all this information."

You can't just go out and drive at the storms, he said.

The public is looking for their 15minutes of fame and they want to capture that.Well, people have died doing that.- David Phillips

"On the morning of, we're looking at visual satellites. That's a huge thing. We're looking for those white puffy clouds.

"Once one of those goes in our ideal area, we're going to jump on that and watch it grow and grow and grow and see what happens."

While it seems that the chasers have finding the storms down to a science, a meteorologist has a warning forstorm chasers.

"What's worse than chasing a storm is catching one, and if you're not prepared for it and you're not protected, you can become a statistic," saidDavid Phillips, seniorclimatologist for Environment Canada.

"You could also make it dangerous for those people who are chasing storms for a scientific point of view.

"The public is looking for their 15minutes of fame and they want to capture that and they want to have a conversation piece. Well, people have died doing that."

Butfor the chasers, finding that perfect storm is just too great a pull.

The 28-year-olddeMilliano, who has been chasing seriously for five years,said that as a child he wasfrightened of storms, and thatmight be why he's now a chaser.

He said he's been on the lookoutfor storms since he got his driver's licence, but it was whenhe saw a supercellswirlingover Red Deerin 2011 that he really became hooked.

"Seeing that storm erupt over your target, that's the best feeling," saiddeMilliano.

"To see what it does from there, that's even better. That raw power that you see in these storms, the motions, there's just nothing like it."