Tornadoes! (Natural Disasters Series)

TWISTER! (1973): The massive tornado that struck Lubbock, Texas after nightfall on May 11, 1970 is documented in vivid and horrifying detail in this 25-minute short film presented by the Defense Civil Preparedness Agency. At the time this was the costliest tornado in U.S. history, leveling nearly 9,000 homes. In the words of narrator Fred Collins, "It's been impartial...nothing has been spared." An insensitive reporter tells a shattered couple in front of their ruined home, "Now you have a pile of rubble where once you had a house." The film ends with KFYO radio broadcaster Bob Nash saying to the camera, "Even in this day and age, you can get trampled by a dinosaur."

DAY OF THE KILLER TORNADOES (1978): "April 3, 1974. The day of the killer tornadoes. They killed 307 people in 11 states."This educational film uses narration, interviews, and actual footage to show how a record-breaking 147 twisters swept through Ohio, Alabama, Kentucky and other states in the spring of 1974, leaving massive destruction and loss of life in their wake. The 1974 Super Outbreak was the second-largest tornado outbreak during a 24-hour period on record until 2011, and remains to this day the most violent.

TORNADO BELOW (1975): Part of NASA's Rediscovery Earth Science Film Series meant for classrooms, Tornado Below dramatizes a novice pilot being caught in a tornado during her first flight, and then segues into a matter-of-fact depiction of tornadoes being investigated scientifically by NASA - including how "baby tornadoes are actually created for extensive study" in labs under controlled conditions. Also stressed is the importance of early warning satellites that can warn population centers of tornadoes before they happen.