You may have already seen this incredible video of a red pickup truck getting blown over and spun around by a tornado, because it’s the kind of clip that quickly goes viral. But if you haven’t, you should now.
Caught in a Texas tornado earlier this week, the red pickup was knocked onto its side by the ferocious winds and spun like a top on the road, before being placed back on its feet, in a bit of near-miraculous good fortune. Video captured by a storm chaser heading in the opposite direction shows what happened next: Incredibly, within seconds of landing back on its wheels, and pointing in the right direction, the truck simply drives away.
You can guess that folks would be interested in catching up with the driver of that truck, because they surely would have an interesting story to tell.
The manhandled truck, by the way, was a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado. Chevy couldn't have dreamed up a better advertisement for the robustness of its model.
Sure enough, media caught up with the pickup’s driver, who turned out to be a 16-year-old by the name of Riley Leon. Describing the experience as like being on an amusement park ride, the teenager told local news outlet KVUE that he was on his way home from a job interview in Elgin, a suburb of Austin, and missed two U-turns on the road before suddenly coming face to face with the tornado.
He explained that the tornado took control of his vehicle even earlier than what can be seen in the video. “There was a ditch”, he said, “and it took me there, and took me out and took me to the street, and that's where I was spinning with the truck.” He described the twister flipping him over “like a carnival game, it was fast.”
Leon also explained that his intent after landing back upright was not just to continue on his way, but rather he thought it was probably wise to get away from the high winds. He stayed in the area and was soon looked at by an Elgin police officer, who reported that the youth had “a scrape or some cuts on his left arm.”
According to reports in the area, winds were close to 220 km/h at the height of the tornado. Riley Leon was both unlucky and extremely lucky on the day.
The truck will need some repairs, he said, and if that’s not feasible he’ll have to buy another one. There’s no word on whether he has gotten the job he had just applied for…
