Unsafe Portrayal of 2-Way Radios in Twister Movie Prompts Radio Safety Warning from Haloid Solutions

When it comes to creating natural disaster films, Hollywood reigns supreme, but movies aren’t entirely accurate when portraying real life. The film and production team of Haloid Solutions spotted several mistakes in how two-way radios were portrayed in the blockbuster Twister, some of which are unsafe if repeated, prompting us to issue a safety warning.

SAFETY WARNING: Mobile radios should not be mounted on top of a vehicle’s dash as they can cause fatal injuries for the vehicle’s occupants. As a vehicle accelerates, or if it is involved in a collision, the radio and associated palm microphone may become projectiles. Moreover, in the event of an airbag deployment, top mounted radios and palm microphones may puncture an airbag or cause shrapnel-like injuries similar to that of an explosive device. Improperly mounted equipment has led to numerous injuries and fatalities in recorded motor vehicle accidents.

Radios should be mounted in a secure location with a mounting bracket, ideally in the vehicle’s center console area. Palm microphones should be mounted to a metal hang-up clip, keeping them free of the vehicle’s airbag deployment area in the event of a collision. For remote mounted radios, the head of the radio can be placed on the dash in an airbag free zone as long as proper mounting brackets are used.

In addition to our safety warning, several radio enthusiasts have reported film prop inaccuracies to us. More specifically, the same radio equipment that was unsafely mounted was not connected to external antennas, rendering them nonfunctional. A VHF two-way mobile radio cannot receive or transmit an outgoing message without an antenna, nor can it receive an incoming signal because the antenna is what catches the electromagnetic waves. So, an antenna-less mobile radio cannot be used to transmit or receive safety or weather-related warnings.

There were other mistakes in the movie with the types of radios used – and how 2-way radios operate in general. But nitpicking Twister’s prop inaccuracies isn’t fair, especially since the movie isn’t unique in missing the mark for how 2-way radios are used in the real world. Hundreds of movies and television shows regularly use the wrong radio equipment in their productions – whether it’s the type of equipment, how it operates, or the period it was manufactured. While most audience members may not notice these inaccuracies, there are millions of two-way radios enthusiasts who will, and worse, amateurs radio owners who may actually try to emulate the unsafe practices portrayed in the films.

Haloid provides production companies with complimentary safety reviews of basic radio reenactments to ensure they are represented accurately. Our movie and film props division can also provide historically accurate equipment, going back to the 1940s, or modern equipment in use today depending on specific geographic requirements. And finally, we can provide encrypted radio equipment for the production team to keep sensitive aspects of filming operations protected from eavesdropping.

For more information or complimentary safety reviews, please contact Haloid’s movies and props experts for assistance.