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i find it so bizarre how something that's catastrophic and life threatening in some parts of the world becomes kind of an aestheticized thrill or hobby for some people. there's just something so uncanny about storm chasing. what makes it a crazy concept to me is less about the thrill seeking aspect of it but more so the contrast in what these storms mean depending on where you live or your demographic. something catastrophic such as a super typhoon, in my part of the world-- that means evacuation, flooded homes, days without power or water, or lives lost. when skies change color, no one grabs a camera. it's not something cinematic to us. we grab canned goods, flashlights, put weights on our roof and pray that it holds. it's far from a recreational activity. typhoons arent something my people chase. typhoons chase us. but for some privileged storm chasers, often white and far removed from that kind of vulnerability, it's an adventure. adrenaline.
there are people who get to play with destruction. they feel adrenaline instead of fear. they get to marvel at catastrophe because catastrophe isnt something that ruins their house or kills their family.
now this isnt moral superiority. thrill seeking is human. it's just that theres really a strange dissonance in how disaster becomes a spectacle when it's not your roof being torn off. not your family dying from natural disaster.
i cant help but think about the luxury of treating calamity as a hobby, the privilege of getting to choose danger instead of having it choose you. some of us get to walk away from the storm, and the rest of us just keep rebuilding from it.
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✦ Trixie ✦
I agree with this! but some storm chasers do it not only for science, but for rescue and recovery as well. Some storm chasers are there before EMS. Of course, this doesnt negate the terrible people who use it for thrill and popularity- i think those people are terrible, but the most famous of them collect data, document it, and potentially save lives.
This is mostly geared towards american severe weather events, and not tropical cyclones, but yes yes yes
oh yes of course i've heard of and have deep respect for the ones who actually do it for research, data collection, or early response. that kind of storm chasing is meaningful work, not just spectacle. i'm most definitely not throwing hate on them more so on how the culture around it can sometimes aestheticize danger in ways that feel disconnected from the real human cost of these disasters especially outside the western context. :3
by nikolai . ..; ; Report
yeah, i rlly dont get people travelling just for the thrill of a typhoon, or any other natural disaster. the recent typhoon kalmaegi killed over 230 people. wind damage, flooding, why would anybody ever want to experience that? like you said, its natural, but shouldnt the cost of human life and property far outweigh such selfish urges? and then they talk about it like "I WAS IN [name of disaster]" and being disgusting.
when i was younger, i used to seek the thrill of a category 5 hurricane. I live in florida. I've always wanted to see one and feel what it'd be like since I live in a sturdy home and all of that- But after Irma hit, which knocked out our power for a long time and uprooted this giant oak tree, i felt quite different. And then Ian happened. And thats what changed my mind.
Nobody should EVER have to go through stuff like that, so why should people seek it like its a tournement? And you mentioned you live in the philippenes; My heart goes out to yall. Especially after the two typhoons. I cant offer much but kind words.
by ✦ Trixie ✦; ; Report
macokusa
They really be doing all that in some developing nation then go back home to their nice suburban home. Just do that in Florida LOL
so true man
by nikolai . ..; ; Report