Meet the women who chase storms in Alberta

Beth Allan used to be terrified of storms. 

In 2007, her mom decided she needed to face her fears head on. She signed up Allan for a storm-chasing tour — and she was hooked. 

"The first time you see a storm, that adrenaline rush — it's like skydiving, right? You chase that forever." 

Allan, who lives in Calgary, is the only female member of Prairie Storm Chasers. She's noticed a lot more people interested in storm chasing this summer compared with previous years, especially women who are looking for the same exhilarating experience.

"There are more women realizing, 'hey, you know what, I actually can do this.'" 

There have been a lot of storms to chase in Alberta. So far this summer, there have been confirmed tornados near Bergen, Coronation and Alliance — and windshield-smashing hail near Innisfail. 

For Allan and others in the small community of chasers, being a woman who pursues storms means thinking about personal safety. A chase can mean standing on the side of a quiet road, sometimes at night. 

"When you're talking with women who chase storms, that's almost always the first thing that comes up, is like, how do you keep yourself safe? What happens if a stranger shows up?"

"I think that stops women, especially, from maybe going out there and photographing lightning at nighttime and sort of getting involved in some of those things where you're alone in the middle of nowhere with maybe sketchy cellphone service." 

Allan makes sure her friends know where she is by sharing her location before heading out on a chase. 

Theresa and Darlene Tanner, a married couple, were both in Edmonton in 1987 when the deadly Black Friday tornado hit the city. 

They said the experience left them traumatized. Years later, they turned to storm chasing to help process those feelings. The couple now live in Alix, Alta., northeast of Red Deer, and have been chasing storms for the past 14 years.

Darlene said each time they go out, there are more cars filled with storm chasers than the last time.

"Especially if it's very severe … people either with a camera or their cellphone and they were just everywhere, even little, little back roads."