KAY COUNTY, Okla.–One of three meteorology students who died storm chasing Friday night was from Evansville, Indiana.
That student has been identified as 22-year-old Drake Brooks. He graduated from Central High School in 2018.
Police say Brooks and two other students were in a car going southbound on I-35 just before midnight when their car hydroplaned, went left of the centerline, and hit a semi.
All three of them were meteorology students at the University of Oklahoma. The other two were identified as Nicholas Nair, 20, of Denton, Texas, and Gavin Short, 19, of Grayslake, Illinois.
The crash happened in Tonkawa, which is about 85 miles north of Oklahoma City. They were traveling back from storm chasing in Kansas.
The University of Oklahoma sent out the following statement:
We are deeply saddened and our sincerest condolences go out to all affected families and friends…Our community in Atmospheric and Geographic Sciences is close-knit, and our School of Meteorology is very much a family. Now, more than ever, we must come together in kindness and heartfelt support for one another. Please join us in offering thoughts and prayers for those impacted.
