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If you’ve ever seen a storm chaser movie or TV show, you’ve probably seen this vehicle.
The tornado intercept vehicle or TIV, for short, is here in Sioux Falls this weekend. In addition, the movie Tornado Alley is also showing at the Washington Pavilion.
Filmmaker and storm chaser Sean Casey is the mastermind behind the movie. For almost a decade, Casey chased storms in the TIV, collecting video for his movie. He uses an iMax camera that he stores in the back of the vehicle to film the tornadoes.
Now, the TIV is a Dodge Ram 3500 and it was put together in 2008. It weighs 15,000 pounds and can travel up to 100 miles per hour. And this vehicle has three axles, instead of the traditional two. It’s made to get as close to a tornado as humanly possible.
And when you take a look at the vehicle, it really looks like a tank. They’ve stripped it down, put armored plating on the sides and installed bullet-proof glass in the window. It also has hydraulic arms that can drop down into the ground.
All of this stuff makes the vehicle able to drive right into a tornado.
The TIV will be at the Washington Pavilion this weekend if you want to check it out in person.
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