Family Remembers Hinton Storm Chaser Killed In Tornado

Richard Henderson was talking to his buddy on his cell phone while storm chasing on Friday, even texted him a picture of the tornado before the phone went dead.

Tuesday, June 4th 2013, 9:52 pm



News 9 has learned another man chasing Friday's tornado has lost his life.

Richard Henderson was talking to his buddy "Sonny" Slay on his cell phone. Henderson even texted Slay a picture of the tornado. But then Slay says all of a sudden he heard debris hitting the pickup and then the phone went dead.

Family members say Henderson liked to live on the edge. But on May 31 he got too close. He was chasing the EF5 tornado as he drove down Highway 81.

Complete Coverage: May 2013 Tornado Outbreak

"I was just coming through Hinton and he said get home to mama. That's the last contact I had with him," said Henderson's dad Harl.

Like other storm chasers Henderson was apparently caught off guard when the storm took a sharp left turn and picked up speed. Richard's family believes he was probably sucked from his pickup truck.

6/2/2013 Related Story: Three Storm Chasers Killed Chasing Tornado In El Reno

"Blunt trauma got him, so it must have throwed him out of the pickup," said Henderson.

Any identification was also sucked out of the car as well so Richard's family didn't know he had died until the next day.

"He was a good father and always wanted to take care of his family," said Dianne Henderson, Richard's mom.

Richard leaves behind two young sons who now unfortunately have a clear understanding of the power of mother nature.

"I don't like him out chasing the storms and I told him," said Dianne. "But that's what he wanted to do."

Funeral services are scheduled for Richard on Wednesday.

logo

Get The Daily Update!

Be among the first to get breaking news, weather, and general news updates from News 9 delivered right to your inbox!

More Like This

June 4th, 2013

March 22nd, 2024

March 14th, 2024

February 9th, 2024

Top Headlines

April 26th, 2024

April 26th, 2024

April 26th, 2024

April 26th, 2024