I Was Ready To Go Home | The TORNADO I Almost Missed

🌪️ THE REAR FLANK | Episode 29: "The One I Almost Missed" Sometimes the storms you remember most aren't the ones you planned for. Episode 29 of The Rear Flank begins close to home on June 23, 2026, as I chase severe storms across western Minnesota with my son. After getting to a point in my career as a filmmaker and storm chaser, this year has left me burnt out, to say the least. What started as a low key backyard chase with my son quickly turned chaotic, with funnel clouds briefly developing before we found ourselves fighting to escape a barrage of destructive hail down a narrow lakeside road on the White Earth Reservation. Just days later, on June 29, I targeted a rare and volatile morning supercell in west-central Minnesota before having to work a night shift at my job as a Flight Nurse that evening. The storm produced reports of 130+ mph winds, multiple tornado warnings, and an incredible display of atmospheric violence—but relentless rain wrapping kept its secrets hidden... ...Then came July 3rd. What appeared to be another frustrating chase day in southeastern Nebraska slowly evolved into something much more. For hours, storms struggled to establish themselves along a stubborn boundary. Many chasers called it a bust. I was ready to head home...Then everything changed. What followed was one of the most intense and unexpected tornado chases of my career as a supercell near Hubbell and Hebron, Nebraska, rapidly intensified and produced a tornado that would astonishingly remain unwarned for nearly 15 minutes. This is the story of the tornado I almost missed. 🎬 The Rear Flank is a cinematic storm chasing documentary series exploring not only the science and beauty of severe weather, but the human experience of pursuing it -    • The Rear Flank™ Series   "To Walk Amongst the Giants." #StormChasing #Tornado #ShotOnRed #Nebraska #Supercell #SevereWeather #TheRearFlank #RyanMauk #Documentary #Weather #ExtremeWeather #StormChaser #Cinematic #TornadoWarning #NatureDocumentary #ToWalkAmongstTheGiants SUBSCRIBE AND SHARE! FOLLOW Ryan Mauk, Storm Chaser Facebook:   / chuckimzz   X/Twitter: https://www.x.com/CRyanMauk Instagram:   / ryanmaukstormchaser   CONTENTS OF THIS VIDEO ------------------------------------------------------- 0:00 - Intro 1:00 - June 23rd in Western MN, meager little backyard fun with my son became more than I expected... 4:14 - Suddenly large hail begins to pummel us and a deer in the road. 6:03 - June 29th, south-central Minnesota. Not too often that I chase in the morning, but racing in from South Dakota was a potent supercell with measured winds of 130mph and tornadoes. I came very close to a few circulations. I had to call it early as I had to be on shift later that evening. 8:32 - July 3, 2026. Southeastern Nebraska. The chase starts just south of Norfolk. 11:25 - I almost turned around and went home, when finally, things started looking interesting... 12:03 - A wall cloud begins to develop, rotation ramping up as well. 13:25 - A Funnel Cloud emerges from the wall cloud just south of Hebron. 15:05 - The wall cloud is now rapidly rotating with rain bands and dust underneath, and I decide to nearly CRASH my car on a minimum maintenance road. 16:38 - The Hubbel, Nebraska #Tornado touches down to my southwest as I maneuver into position. 16:57 - The Tornado gets obscured by rain in the distance, although it's still visible. I jump out of frame quick and record a quick live for social media. 17:36 - A close up shot of the large cone Tornado 18:20 - The Tornado disappears as quickly as it appeared, like a ghost in the rain. 19:18 - I head south on yet another slimy road as I did in Ep. 28    • The GHOSTS of Kansas: Chasing Tornadoes Ba...   ...but this time with a visible funnel bearing down on me. Just a little nervous here... 20:45 - A second attempt at tornado genesis. CRAZY motion on this wall cloud. 22:08 - Thing are looking dire form Haddam, Kansas as the rotation and inflow into the mesocyclone are become ominously violent. 23:14 - Possible large rain-wrapped Tornado to my south, underneath amazing structure. 24:10 - A new wall cloud and funnel develops a short distance away to my west, and there's only one way to go... 24:46 - The funnel ascends, and I catch up with The Otus Project and Tanner Charles. I then realize that I am once again back in Kansas... Again. 25:27 - The storm becomes outflow dominant, the chase is over. 26:12 - Outro. A final thought...