Angelika is a storm chaser. “I read about myself: It’s a pity for the girl, it’s signing yourself up for death”

Your fascination with storms began on August 15, 2008. What do you remember from that day?

It was a very dark, stormy day. The air was thick with tension from the morning, and later a strong wind began to pick up. On the one hand, I was a terrified 13-year-old girl, but on the other hand, I was fascinated by what was happening. I remember the evening news about the strongest tornado that had hit Poland. In the background, there were screaming people from the coach with the Śląsk Song and Dance Ensemble crew. The whole scene was terrifying. It made me realize how destructive nature can be.

Later I learned that the strongest funnel of this tornado was classified as EF4, which in practice means winds of over 300 km/h. Buildings that such a tornado encounters in its path can be leveled to the ground. Such force is also able to lift cars. These are already sky-high values ​​and images that are very memorable. After this event, I started looking at the sky more often.

With fear?

There was probably more fascination in it. I started to literally devour geography books and all available materials on storms and lightning discharges. I spent a lot of time reading about the mechanisms of their formation and in the attic of my family home in Myślenice. It was the highest point of the building with a fantastic view of the horizon.

Were you storm hunting there?

You could say that. I would take my camera with me and wait for the lightning. It’s such a difficult to describe moment of excitement, great emotions. I could spend long hours in that attic and not be bored for a moment.

Angelika is a storm chaser. ‘I read about myself: Pity the girl, it’s signing yourself up for death’ photo: private archive of Angelika Zięba

Your fascination eventually led you to the Polish Storm Chasers Association.

I browsed many meteorological websites, read forums for enthusiasts who do this and finally came across the Łowcy website. I was their fan from the very beginning. Sometimes I sent them reports of events in my area. Soon after, I became the administrator of the Małopolscy Łowcy Burz website and someone noticed that my texts were interesting and substantive. A friend from Krakow, who was a member of the Association, asked if I would like to join the meeting in Sosnowiec. And that’s how it all started.

What do you do in Storm Chasers?

My area of ​​responsibility is writing, providing information via our websites and sending out press releases to the media. I also communicate with our observers, collecting information from them from the field. In addition, we have a field group in the Association that goes on storm chases, but also a research group that analyzes data, prepares warnings and forecasts to warn the population in time. Some of the people from this group also send reports from all over Europe to the database of dangerous phenomena (ESWD). So we bring together very diverse people to provide information as comprehensively as possible.

Have you ever joined a storm chase?

Sure! The first chase was in Silesia. I remember that the storm was approaching from the Czech Republic and Slovakia, before which even the 2nd and 3rd level of threat was issued, but contrary to the calculations of numerical models, they were much weaker, which shows how uncertain storm forecasting is, and how helpless meteorologists are. Despite everything, I remember it as a positive experience. Seeing the storm live, being able to track it and document it is something incredible.

Angelika is a storm chaser. ‘I read about myself: Pity the girl, it’s signing yourself up for death’ photo: private archive of Angelika Zięba

How do you prepare for these storm chases? What do you take with you?

Preparations begin a few days in advance with weather model analysis. Of course, we take a car with us on the chase, which, in addition to its obvious transport function, also serves as a safe place. It acts like a Faraday cage, protecting us from lightning – assuming, of course, that we have closed windows and do not touch metal objects. Internet access is also important to monitor current developments on weather radars and GPS. Sometimes you have to make a quick decision when the situation is dynamic. Our team is divided into people in the field and forecasters who analyze the situation and provide information. Communication is key, and our primary goal is to warn people about the dangers.

How do your friends and family react to your passion?

They are always very supportive. They also know that I am able to sacrifice a lot of things (like sleep) to help my colleagues and, if possible, document dangerous phenomena. I have read comments about me that “it’s a pity for the girl, she’s signing herself up for death”, but I have never heard an opinion in my group that would make me feel discriminated against, quite the opposite.

There are moments when you think to yourself, “Angelika, you just saved someone’s life”?

There are some where people actually thank us for warnings that allowed them to secure, for example, agricultural equipment or avoid danger. Recently, teachers wrote to us asking if it would be safe to organize a trip on a given day. It is very motivating when we see that our actions have a real impact on people’s safety. It is also encouraging that people responsible for children’s safety take their job so seriously.

I also remember a message from a woman who was going on a trip to a place where a level 3 or 2 warning was issued. When she saw the effects of the storm a few hours later, she thanked us very much for being informed in time.

But I’m guessing your inbox isn’t bursting at the seams with only good news.

Of course. I would even say that there are more negative ones. People do not always understand that a storm is a local phenomenon, which is why they sometimes claim that our forecasts are completely wrong and ignore our warnings. And yet a storm hitting town A does not mean that it will look the same in town B, 3 km away. The increasingly frequent conspiracy theories are also frustrating – sometimes we read comments in which someone attributes atmospheric phenomena to the actions of governments or mysterious organizations. We do try to educate and explain, but it is like kicking a horse.

The most frustrating conspiracy theory?

One that I am completely unable to understand is the one about chemtrails. Many people have written to us about this, swearing that the contrail is actually a secret action of governments to poison people. And you can try to explain honestly that this phenomenon is natural, results from the laws of chemistry and physics, but it usually does not bring results. We have noticed that the number of fans of conspiracy theories has increased over the last two or three years.

There is probably also some climate change denial.

Yes, and this is also simply due to lack of knowledge.

However, the matter is not so clear-cut in the case of storms. Analyses suggest that storms may become more frequent, but less intense. The Arctic is warming, which weakens the air flow (jet stream), which is key to the intensification of storms. In Poland, the frequency of storms increases by only a few more days over the course of a decade. While phenomena such as flash floods, downpours and droughts are scientifically documented as effects of climate change, in the case of storms, there is no clear evidence as to whether they will be more destructive. Here, the key is to analyze reports over many years.

These are very complex phenomena, so our role in educating and raising public awareness seems all the more important to me. I hope that our actions will contribute to increasing safety and understanding of these fascinating, yet dangerous phenomena.

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Angelika Zięba – graduate of the Landscape Architecture Technical School in Myślenice, where she comes from. Resident of Krakow. Member of the Skywarn Polska Association since 2018. From an early age, she has been passionate about observing and researching dangerous atmospheric phenomena, with an emphasis on convection phenomena.

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