British Man Makes a Leap Across the Pond to Track Oklahoma Storms

By Colleen Chen, NEWS 9

OKLAHOMA CITY -- James Menzies moved countries to become a NEWS 9 Storm Tracker.

"I've always wanted to do this. I've always been interested in storms since I was about 15-years-old," Menzies said.

He said his friends in London thought he was crazy and joking when he told them he wanted to move to Oklahoma, but he couldn't be happier.

"The fact that you can have thunderstorms one minute and raging snow the next, I think that's incredible. You don't see those extremes in England," he said.

Documenting January's snow storm has been exciting for Menzies who was a bit upset at missing England's record breaking winter weather this year.

"I haven't seen snow like this since I was 8-years-old," Menzies said.

He said it's no coincidence he aimed to work as a NEWS 9 Storm Tracker.

"I've known about Gary England for a long time. I've been watching him since I was a little kid seeing him on documentaries back in England about storms," Menzies said.

Menzies storm tracking truck is outfitted with 4 live streaming cameras, radar, and a touch screen computer.

Menzies first came to Oklahoma in 1998 to study at OU and said the friendliness of Oklahomans stayed with him and made him want to come back.

"I love Oklahoma. I enjoy it," Menzies said.

Aside from the adrenaline rush, Menzies said he's thrilled with what storm tracking does for the bigger picture.

"It fulfills my adrenaline rush chasing tornadoes, filming them, watching Mother Nature's fury, but at the same time, it helps save lives. And if I can do that within the same five hours of a day, I'm happy with that," Menzies said.

Menzies said he still has to make one more trip to England to finish packing his family's belongings, and he expects to stay in Oklahoma for the long run.