See the Pics: Twister Hits The Weather Channel 'Tornado Hunt Team

The Weather Channel:

The Weather Channel Tornado Hunt Team is safe, but shaken up after their chase vehicles took a direct hit by a violent tornado west of Oklahoma City.

Meteorologist Mike Bettes was chasing the monster rain-wrapped tornado near El Reno, Okla. when he says the storm picked up the heavy chase SUV and threw it an estimated 200 yards.

"We were ahead of the storm. We stopped to broadcast and I saw a large violent wedge tornado," Bettes said in a live phone interview after he established phone connection after the incident.

Here's The Weather Channel video report about the terrifying situation:

Read more about the crew's chilling experience here.

Here is the "before" pic of the Tornado Hunt Team vehicle:

And here is the "after" pic:

The Weather Channel executive producer posted this Tweet about the crew member's conditions:

The Weather Channel Tornado Hunt team is at a hospital in Chickasha, OK. Some are getting treatment for cuts/broken ribs, but all are OK.

— Jesse Hamilton (@JesseJHamilton) June 1, 2013

The Weather Channel team indicates that the tornado that tossed their vehicle is the one that is captured in the chilling video we posted here.