In Tornado Alley, weathercasters admired for keeping communities safe

In some parts of the country, the meteorologist on the local news is more than just a weatherman. He’s a life-saver, a legend, a guardian.

Few meteorologists fit that profile more than Oklahoma City News 9’s Michael Armstrong.  He started his career in 1999 covering that year’s historic tornado outbreak in Oklahoma City, shortly after joining the station. Since then, he’s covered tornado outbreaks in 2008 and 2011 winning a Heartland Emmy and the National Edward R. Murrow Award for his work.

Armstrong grew up in “tornado alley” and remembers watching the region brace itself for tornadoes as a child. He was working Monday when the EF-5 tornado spun up and roared through Moore and other areas of suburban Oklahoma City.

“This was a process we’d been through,” he said. “The problem with this storm was it developed almost right on top of us.”

Armstrong says he tries to be who he normally is when broadcasting during a severe weather situation. He considers this to be what he was built to do.

“I think we have to keep a level head in these types of situations. Some people are able to do that, and some people struggle with that,” he said. “Part of that is a natural ability that I’ve been given — and also being around Gary England, our director of meteorology who has been around 40 years.”

Armstrong says working with England gives him confidence — being able to turn to someone who’s been there and done that time and time again.

Armstrong compares tornado preparedness in tornado alley, specifically in Oklahoma, to earthquake preparedness in Japan. With perfect conditions, it’s more a matter of when, than if, a tornado will strike.

“When we have big tornadoes in May in Oklahoma, it’s really not a surprise. It’s part of what we deal with. So when you deal with something this often, you get better at it. Unfortunately, it takes large tornadoes to do that,” Armstrong said.