Florida is the area perhaps most frequented by the world's storm hunters. And it is not hard to see why. It has clocked up 350 lightning deaths since 1959, followed a long way behind by North Carolina and Texas with just under 200. The warm and often humid weather in the coastal area provides a plentiful supply of fuel for frequent storms. And an added bonus is that communication routes are good when compared with other parts of the world which may experience extreme whether.

The Mississippi basin of the US is another popular hunter destination, vulnerable to severe tornadoes reaching speeds of up to 400kmh. North west Texas and the eastern Texas Panhandle boast stunning tornadoes, with their vast open spaces making for good distance-viewing conditions. Kansas and eastern Colorado also attract hunters for similar reasons.

In the UK, the clash of cold polar air with moist or dry warm air from the southern areas, such as Biscay, the Gulf Stream and the North Atlantic Drift all add to the tornado-creating cocktail. The country has the highest frequency of reported tornadoes per unit area of any nation in the world, according to a 1973 study by the renowned Professor Fujita, who devised a new scale for measuring the phenomenon. The tornadoes may, however, be weaker than their US counterparts and other factors, such as a more congested road network and poorer visibility can render them less spectacular for the serious hunter.