Victorian Storm Chasers have an eye on the sky

MOE’S JODIE Gore should come with a warning.

Victorian Storm Chasers. Moe's Jodie Gore

MOE’S Jodie Gore should come with a warning.

“If there’s a storm on its way I just can’t sit still. I get giddy and jumpy and can’t concentrate,” Jodie confesses.

“I have to be somewhere to watch it. I can’t explain it. I just love the energy of a storm, the atmosphere, the unknown.”

So you can imagine Jodie’s delight when, in 2013, she joined the newly formed Victorian Storm Chasers.

Jodie is one of the original members of the group, and one of the few rural members, who all come together on Facebook to anticipate storms, dissect weather patterns and issue warnings to the 147,000 users who have liked the VSC.

And yes, Jodie is the first to admit Victoria is not exactly tornado alley, nor cyclone central, when it comes to mother nature’s moods.

“Some years you can be disappointed because nothing happens,” she says.

“We don’t get severe storms, but there are instances where we have had tornadoes and we give warnings on large hail or potential flooding and we pass on bushfire warnings from the CFA.

“There’s a joke among members that we call Bairnsdale ‘tornado alley’ because it seems they get all the storms lately. It comes from the northeast and lands in Bairnsdale.”

Jodie and her fellow amateur meteorologists monitor the weather through the day — especially if storms are imminent — using apps and websites such as Weather Australia, lightning tracker, Weatherzone and the Bureau of Meteorology.

She says they often issue alerts ahead of the bureau and there have been times she’s set her alarm or stayed up late if a barrage is on its way.

“I don’t like the fact something bad happens to people, but I’ve always loved weather and storms and everything about them,” Jodie says.

“I’m always looking at clouds, when walking or driving, and I’ll drive after a storm just for the thrill of it, to be a part of it.”

The 34-year-old believes her fascination for the heavens developed while living in Queensland as a teenager, during which time she lived through a category F1 tornado.

“It started pelting down and it took two adults to shut the front door. Roofs were ripped off and trees were down. It was absolute mayhem.

“But it was also a bit exciting,” she adds, somewhat guiltily.

“If it wasn’t for my family living in Gippsland I’d live in Queensland just for the storms.”

Visiting Tornado Alley in the US is on her to-do list and she says she’s not worried about danger, as tour companies specialise in storm chasing.

Not surprisingly, the mother-of-three is a photographer who, aside from snapping portraits, weddings and families, always takes her camera when outdoors.

“Usually when I tell people I love weather they just roll their eyes and think I’m a little crazy. I don’t think they quite get it,” she says.

READ MORE: facebook.com/victorianstormchasers; jodieleephotography.com.au