‘We have cameras all over, filming the outside. I hold a Panasonic VariCam with an 85 mm portrait lens to take the close-ups of Simon.’ He pauses again and Craig fidgets in her seat. Robin can tell she is trying hard to stay patient. ‘We got everything sorted, the equipment up and running on the top of the van, then did some initial footage.’

‘Such as?’

‘Simon’s set-up on film, some shots of Dr Mason explaining the equipment. But then at about midnight I had a problem with my camera.’

‘What sort of problem?’

‘Nothing big, just a firmware issue. I think it needs an update. But I didn’t want to risk it failing as the storm reached its climax, so I went down to get the backup out of my car. But it wasn’t there.’ His hands fiddle with the plastic cup. ‘I was sure I’d packed it along with everything else, but I must have forgotten. I tried to phone Ian back at the lab to bring it, but my mobile couldn’t get reception, so I left to go and pick it up.’

‘Leaving Sharp and Mason alone in the van.’

White nods.

‘And what time was this?’

‘About half twelve, I think. The storm was starting to build momentum.’

Robin knows that time fits with the footage they’ve already been given by the BBC team. Someone is going through it all now, wading through hours of video of the car park, viewed from the outside of the van.

‘Then what?’

White pauses, rubbing at his eyes.

‘Do you want to take a minute?’ DC Grey asks gently, receiving a glare from Craig.

‘No, no, I’m fine. Just want to get this over and done with. It took me about half an hour to get to the lab, then back again. But by the time I returned to the car park, everything was really hairy. The storm had escalated, it was bigger than any of us had imagined. I parked a level down and tried to get up to the top, but the wind was too violent.’

‘You couldn’t get to the van?’ Craig asks.

‘Have you ever tried walking in a downdraught from a supercell, DI Craig?’ Justin White turns bolshy, and Robin can see the side of the man that regularly drives into tornadoes with only a camera to protect him. ‘You’re talking wind speeds of up to a hundred miles an hour. Pouring rain. There was no way I was getting up to the top level of that car park. Sharp had a Sony FS5 – he regularly recorded storms himself. And there was a camera top-left capturing the interior of the van. I knew that even without me there we could get the footage we needed.’

‘There were two more cameras in the van?’ Craig glances at Grey.

‘Yes. Haven’t you found the footage?’

Craig gestures to Grey and he gets up quickly, leaving the room.