Sean Cameron Casey is an American IMAX filmmaker and storm chaser who appeared in the Discovery Channel reality television seriesStorm Chasers. Casey created an IMAX film called Tornado Alley about chasing tornadoes and had to build the Tornado Intercept Vehicle and the Tornado Intercept Vehicle 2 to film inside a tornado. Tornado Alley was released worldwide on March 18, 2011. Casey has been named one of the 50 best minds of 2008 by Discover Magazine.
Tornado Intercept Vehicles
Casey built two mobile armored trucks called Tornado Intercept Vehicles to film very near to from inside the tornadoes he chases, sometimes with atmospheric scientist Joshua Wurman's Center for Severe Weather Research and the Doppler on Wheels radar trucks. Construction began on the TIV in 2003 and cost over $80,000. Sean began concept of the TIV after having to use rented minivans to storm chase, and being unable to get up close to a tornado. The windows are bullet resistant polycarbonate at thick. There's a 7.3-liter Ford Power Stroke turbodiesel under the hood, and the top speed is. The TIV weighs in at and holds of fuel. Construction began on TIV2 in September 2007 with help from Great Plains Technology Center in Lawton, Oklahoma after Sean realized he needed to upgrade his vehicle. TIV2 weighs in at and is a 4-wheel drive, 3 axle vehicle. It stands taller than the original TIV and is capable of going on mud and unpaved roads without the fear of getting stuck. The original TIV has 2-wheel drive and extremely low ground clearance that would cause it to get stuck on unpaved roads. It is powered by a 6.7-liter Cummins turbodiesel engine, modified with propane and water injection to produce 625 horsepower. This gives TIV2 an estimated top speed of over. Fuel capacity is in a custom fuel tank, giving TIV2 an approximate range over. The body of TIV2 is constructed of a 1/8-inch steel skin welded over a square tubing steel frame. The windows in TIV2 are all bullet resistant 1 5/8 inch interlayered polycarbonate sheets and tempered glass. TIV2 also features an IMAX filming turret similar to the one on the original TIV. The original TIV's somewhat cumbersome hydraulic claws were not used on TIV2 in favor of four hydraulic skirts that drop down to deflect wind over the TIV to stabilize it and protect the underside from debris plus two stakes that extend down. The stakes were so effective that after the first use, TIV2 could not retract the stakes and they had to be dug out by hand.
