http://abcnews.go.com/US/tornadoes-rip-midwest-89-dead-joplin-mo/story?id=13662193 wrote:
Tornadoes Rip Across Midwest; 89 Dead in Joplin, Mo.
By RICHARD ESPOSITO, LEEZEL TANGLAO and KEVIN DOLAK
May 23, 2011
<<Rescue workers today searched for victims of fierce storms that ripped through several Midwestern states this weekend, killing at least 89 people in Joplin, Mo., where a devastating tornado touched down and left trapped survivors still crying out for help this morning. Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency Sunday evening and activated the Missouri National Guard in response to the destruction. St. John's Regional Medical Center in Joplin, Mo., was fully evacuated after it took a direct hit from the tornado. Every window in the facility was blown out and the roof was torn off. Seven people have been reported dead at a nursing home, according to police reports.
In the city of about 50,000 people 160 miles south of Kansas City, the tornado was reported to be a mile wide, with winds of nearly 200 mph that ravaged the area. Authorities estimate 25 to 30 percent of Joplin has been damaged by the tornado, with highly populated areas having been hit by the storm. Cries could be heard early this morning from people trapped below the wreckage, while crews have been pulling out bodies and lining them up in the streets for loved ones to identify, according to ABC News affiliate KODE.
There is fear of gas explosions in the storm's aftermath and authorities are telling people not to light any cigarettes because so many gas pipes are broken, causing concern that what's left of Joplin might go up in flames, KODE reported. "These storms have caused extensive damage across Missouri, and they continue to pose significant risk to lives and property," Gov. Nixon said. "As a state, we are deploying every agency and resource available to keep Missouri families safe, search for the missing, provide emergency medical care, and begin to recover."
State and local law enforcement agencies, including fire mutual aid, are coordinating search and rescue and recovery operations. The Missouri State Highway Patrol sent troopers from other regions to help local officers in southern Missouri deal with the destruction, the governor's office said in a statement.
Keith Stammer, emergency management director for the city of Joplin, told "Good Morning America" that all 25 of the city's sirens did activate, and that there was a 20-minute notice from when the sirens were activated before there was a first report of a tornado strike. "At the moment its surreal, our landmarks are gone -- road signs, places where you know to turn -- we're doing search and rescue, going house to house on that six mile strip," Stammer told "GMA."
Jeff Piotrowsky, a storm chaser who was in Joplin at the time the storm hit and spoke to "GMA" about witnessing the tornado form over the city, said, "We saw a big cloud mass and we knew it was going to start tornadoing. It quickly brewed to a half mile wide, then three-quarters ? then it came to the heart of the city," Piotrowsky said, adding that "there was a warning, about 17 minutes."
Federal Emergency Management Agency Region VII set up a response coordination center and sent a liaison team to the Missouri state emergency communications center, according to a FEMA official. "Basically it's an all-out effort to get all of the most important resources available for this type of situation down as soon as possible," a state emergency management representative said.
In total, 70 tornadoes were produced by the storm system since Friday, including at least 47 tornadoes Sunday. Tornadoes were reported in seven states from the Canadian border to Oklahoma. Warnings and watches were posted from Texas to Michigan.
President Obama released a statement on the emergency late Sunday night, saying, "Michelle and I send our deepest condolences to the families of all those who lost their lives in the tornadoes and severe weather that struck Joplin, Missouri as well as communities across the Midwest today. We commend the heroic efforts by those who have responded and who are working to help their friends and neighbors at this very difficult time," Obama said in the statement.
According to Sharon Watson with the Kansas State Division of Emergency Management, there was also hail as large as a baseball reported throughout northeast part of the state.>>
89 Dead in Joplin
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89 Dead in Joplin
Art Neuendorffer