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Worst week of tornadoes ends with more stormsNearly 300 twisters reported in past seven days
OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma (CNN) -- More tornado warnings were issued Saturday as the United States nears the end of the most active week of tornadoes on record. There appears to be no end in sight for the series of storms that have battered the Midwest and South and killed 44 people. "We just don't have a down day; that's what's been very unusual," Rich Thompson, lead forecaster at the Storm Prediction Center of the National Weather Service, told The Associated Press. "It just doesn't stop." Warnings were reported Saturday in Indiana, Missouri and Illinois. The storms that bring the tornadoes have also unleashed heavy rain, lightning, hail and straight-line winds. Nearly 300 tornadoes have occurred during the past week in the United States, according to the National Weather Service. States from Kansas to Georgia have suffered storm damage, injuries and deaths. That total is about 100 more than the most recent comparable rash of storms, in 1999. The 1999 barrage had held the record for any 10-day period since record-keeping began in the 1950s, Dan McCarthy, a Storm Prediction Center meteorologist, told The Associated Press. Oklahoma digs out after two tornadoesPresident Bush declared Oklahoma a federal disaster area Saturday, clearing the way for federal aid, after two days of tornadoes that devastated homes and businesses near Oklahoma City. The president's action makes federal funding available in the counties of Canadian, Cleveland, Grady, Kingfisher, Lincoln, Logan, McClain, Oklahoma and Pottawatomie, the statement said. Damage surveys are continuing, and other counties might be added to the list. "Assistance can include grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses," and other programs to aid individuals and business owners, a White House statement said. Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry declared a state of emergency in two counties Friday after a tornado slammed the east and southeast side of Oklahoma City during rush hour Thursday evening. That storm injured more than 130 people, destroyed 300 houses south of the city and caused an estimated $100 million-plus in damage. No serious injuries were reported after a second tornado swept through the Oklahoma City area Friday. Rescue officials in Bethany, near Oklahoma City, said Saturday that people heeded tornado warnings and sought shelter in the latest storm. But Bethany Deputy Fire Chief David Beck told CNN, "There's pretty significant damage." The two tornadoes struck about four years after one of the most deadly recorded tornadoes in U.S. history hit near Oklahoma City, killing 47 people. Aircraft, school damagedDozens of airplanes were damaged Friday when the twister passed over Wiley Post Airport, seven miles northwest of downtown Oklahoma City. Most of the hangars at the small airport were hit by the tornado, according to an employee at Million Air Charter. Power remained out at the airport Saturday, the employee said. The tornado destroyed a large section of roof at Putnam City West High School, northwest of downtown Oklahoma City. All lanes of Interstate 35 in northern Oklahoma City were shut down for a time because power lines fell across the expressway. An estimated 24,000 homes and businesses were left without power in the wake of the storm, according to television station KOCO, a CNN affiliate. Heavy rain and hail the size of golf balls fell along the storm's path, according to reporters in the field. The tornado began its trek on the southwestern edge of Oklahoma City, skipping northeastward over the landscape, touching down at times to snap the tops off trees, and damage buildings and signs. After passing over the northern suburbs, the twister continued northeastward along a path parallel to the Turner Turnpike to the south of Tulsa. No significant damage was reported southwest of Tulsa, where a funnel cloud was spotted. Copyright 2003 CNN. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report.
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