Freddy Mckinney
Freddy Mckinney | |
|---|---|
| Instagram information | |
| Followers | 11,000 |
| YouTube information | |
| Channel | |
| Years active | 2014–present |
| Genre | Storm chasing |
| Subscribers | 449,000 |
| Views | 63 million |
Freddy McKinney is a professional storm chaser and YouTuber. As of December 8, 2025, McKinney has 449,000 subscribers on YouTube and 11,000 followers on Instagram.
Early life
McKinney was born in Rising City, Nebraska. McKinney’s fascination with weather began when he was four years old. After reading meteorology books and studying radar equipment, him and his father started going on storm chasing trips.[1]
Career
In 2021, McKinney teamed up with WOWT to chase storms in Kansas. The team saw quarter sized hail during a thunderstorm. A brief tornado formed 10 miles south of the team, but they weren’t fast enough to catch it.[2]
On May 2, 2024, an EF3 tornado touched down near Hawley, Texas, injuring 4 people. McKinney was storm chasing this tornado and happened to catch the tornado destroying a home right in front of him. McKinney drove down the driveway of the home after realizing it was hit by the tornado. After arriving at the home to assess the damage, 4 people from the house started running to his car asking for help. 7-year old Lane Lambert was picked up by the tornado and was thrown 25 feet.[3] His mother claims that if McKinney didn't arrive in time, Lane would've bled out from the head.[4]
References
- ^ Dykstra, Tanner. "A changing profession: Social media's impact on storm chasing". Nebraska Public Media. Retrieved 2025-12-04.
- ^ Ostarly, Clay (2021-04-10). "WOWT partners with local storm chasers". WOWT. Retrieved 2025-12-04.
- ^ Hays, Julie; Gartner, Jordan (2024-05-04). "'Absolute miracle': Boy, 7, survives being thrown by tornado that destroyed family home". WEAU 13. Retrieved 2025-12-04.
- ^ "Storm chaser saves Texas family of 4 after tornado destroys home - CBS Texas". CBS. 2024-05-03. Retrieved 2025-12-04.