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Biographical data for Warren Faidley
Warren was the first person to pursue severe weather in a full-time, professional capacity, as a journalist, consultant, cinematographer and photographer. The majority of storm chasers featured in TV specials and seen on the Internet only chase a few storms as part-time, seasonal or recreational pursuits.
Over the past 20 years, he has experienced and survived some of earth's most breathtaking and sometimes violent weather. Warren is an international lecturer and has spoken at events like the World Conference on Disaster Management, The University of Nebraska, Worley International, The American Red Cross and various safety and commercial venues. His safety consulting clients have included DuPont, Johnson & Johnson and assorted Government agencies.
Warren is one of the few individuals who has experienced firsthand an F-5 tornado, a category 5 hurricane's 155 mph winds (Andrew 1992), flash floods, firestorms, incapacitating cold, baseball-sized hailstones, food poisoning, rogue waves, lightning jolts, bullets, rock-slides, enraged farmers, reptiles, sinkholes and Mad-Max-like characters along the highways -- and survived to tell the stories. Because of Warren’s first hand experiences of out-witting even the most violent of storms, he is considered as one of the world’s top severe weather and natural disaster survival experts.
His amazing career began at age 12 after we was swept away by a flash flood. After recovering from the near drowning -- he moved on to riding his bicycle into the heart of dust devils. (Small, tornado-like desert whirlwinds). His very first tornado chase in 1987 landed him in a small west Texas town that had been swept away by a violent tornado. His professional storm chasing career was launched after he took an amazing photograph of lightning hitting a light pole in an oil and gasoline tank farm. The shot nearly cost him his life. The image was published in Life Magazine who billed him as a "Storm Chaser."
Foraging through storm surges and flying debris, his stunning images of Hurricane Andrew are some of the only known still pictures of the Category 5 hurricane (in progress) as it slammed into south Florida in 1992. He was the first cinematographer ever to capture a tornado on 35mm motion picture film. (McLean, Texas, June 1997). Warren was an initial motion picture consultant for Twister. One of his tornado images was used for the movie poster and DVD cover.
Warren has been featured in countless print and television specials including National Geographic Explorer, The BBC and The Weather Channel. He was recently the
star of a Discovery HD Theater "Risk Takers" special. His images and footage have been used by diversified clientele including Paul McCartney, NASA, MTV, The New York Times, MTV, The NFL, Sheryl Crow, Life and Time Magazines, NASCAR. and USA Today.
Warren's safety, storm interceptions and charity projects are sponsored in part by:
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