Oklahoma tornado: Latest developments in this disaster
CNN Staff
Updated
6:44 AM EDT, Wed May 22, 2013
Story highlights
At its strongest, the tornado was an EF5, the National Weather Service says
At least 24 dead, more than 100 people rescued after tornado hit, officials say
Insurance claims will likely top $1 billion, state insurance official says
The mayor says "we (have) gone from rescue and searching to recovery"
For local coverage of Monday’s devastating storms in Oklahoma, go to these CNN affiliates: KFOR, KOCO, KOKH, KOKI
(CNN) —
At least 24 people – including nine children – were killed when a massive tornado struck an area outside Oklahoma City on Monday afternoon, officials said.
At least seven of those children were killed at Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore, Oklahoma, police said. Emergency personnel on Tuesday continued to scour the school’s rubble – a scene of twisted I-beams and crumbled cinder blocks.
Ja'Nae Hornsby, 9, is among the children killed at the school, her father says.
PHOTO:
Courtesy Hornsby Family
The tornado was 1.3 miles wide as it moved through Moore, in the southern part of the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, the National Weather Service said. The estimated peak wind ranged from 200 to 210 mph – which would make it an EF5, the most powerful category of tornadoes possible – according to the agency.
– About 2,400 homes were damaged in the Oklahoma cities of Moore and Oklahoma City, said Jerry Lojka of the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management. Some 10,000 people were directly impacted by the tornado, he said.
A message is left by a homeowner who lost his home in the May 20 tornado on Monday, May 27, in Moore, Oklahoma. View more photos of the aftermath in the region and another gallery of aerial shots of the damage.
Left to right, Jaqi Castro, Angelica Morris-Smith and Cetoria Petties walk through a tornado ravaged neighborhood handing out supplies to residents and fellow volunteers on May 27.
Residents gather in the First Baptist Church for the Oklahoma Strong memorial service on Sunday, May 26, to honor victims of the recent deadly tornado in Moore, Oklahoma.
Volunteers bow their heads in reverence on Saturday, May 25, in front of a memorial at the Plaza Towers Elementary School where seven children died during the devastating tornado, in Moore, Oklahoma, on May 20.
A volunteer signs a cross on May 25 at a makeshift memorial outside of the destroyed Plaza Towers Elementary School where seven children were killed in Monday's tornado in Moore.
Debris is scattered across a driveway on May 23. Severe thunderstorms barreled through this Oklahoma City suburb at dawn Thursday, complicating cleanup efforts.
Casey Angle walks on the bunk bed she shared with her sister Sydney, who was among the students killed at Plaza Towers Elementary School during the tornado.
Teachers from Fairview Elementary School help clean up former school counselor Kay Taylor's home in south Oklahoma City on May 22, two days after an extremely powerful tornado tore through Moore, Oklahoma.
Jake English, 12, cleans up retired school counselor Kay Taylor's home on May 22 in south Oklahoma City, just west of Moore. The storm was part of a tornado outbreak that began in the Midwest and Plains on Sunday, May 19.
Cars marked with an orange X, meaning they have been checked for occupants, are piled up in front of the entrance to the damaged Moore Medical Center on May 20.
Jim Routon hugs his neighbor, 7-year-old Hezekiah, after the tornado strikes on May 20. An earlier version of this caption incorrectly stated that Routon was Hezekiah's teacher. See an interview with the pair.
A massive tornado approaches Moore on May 20. The storm first touched down to the west of the city near Newcastle, Oklahoma. Visit CNN.com/impact for ways to help the victims.
PHOTO:
Richard Rowe/Reuters/Landov
Previously reported:
– Gov. Mary Fallin said the tornado was “one of (the) most horrific storms and disasters that this state has ever faced.” Oklahoma “will get through this. … We will overcome. We will rebuild. We will regain our strength,” she said.
– Officials are working on legislation for an emergency fund that would help the state’s recovery.
– Insurance claims will likely top $1 billion, Kelly Collins of the Oklahoma Insurance Commission told CNN. The cost would be higher than that from the May 3, 1999, tornado that hit the same area.
– Moore Fire Chief Gary Bird said searchers planned to search every affected structure and vehicle three times by Tuesday night.
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
An aerial view of the destruction caused by the massive tornado that struck areas south of Oklahoma City on Monday, May 20, shows the magnitude of damage left in its path. The storm's winds topped 200 mph as it carved a 17-mile path of destruction through Oklahoma City suburbs. On Tuesday, May 21, CNN sent photographer David McNeese to capture the story from above:
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
The storm, which touched down near Newcastle, Oklahoma, spanned 1.3 miles. Some areas along the path were completely flattened.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
Officials from the National Weather Service gave the tornado that hit Moore, Oklahoma, on May 20 a preliminary EF5 rating -- the highest score on the scale that measures tornado intensities.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
The tornado tore through the Oklahoma City suburbs, hitting the town of Moore the hardest. It packed winds that topped 200 mph.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
A search-and-rescue effort to find survivors shifted Tuesday to one of recovery, officials said.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
The devastation in Moore was so complete that the mayor said city officials were racing to print new street signs to help guide rescuers and residents through a suddenly twisted and unfamiliar landscape.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
A group of homes was reduced to rubble.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
Debris from homes and structures was strewn for miles around.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
In some areas, the homes of an entire street were destroyed.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
Rescuers and first responders immediately began searching through the rubble of structures on May 20.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
Large trees were uprooted and flattened.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
Given its breadth and power, the tornado ranks among some of the strongest storms ever to strike the United States, CNN senior meteorologist Dave Hennen said.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
Homes in some areas were relatively undamaged while others very nearby were destroyed.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
Police, firefighters, volunteers and nearly 180 National Guard troops joined forces Tuesday in searching the rubble and securing areas hit by the storm.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
In 1999 and then again in 2003, Moore took direct hits from tornadoes that took eerily similar paths to 2013's twister. The 1999 storm packed the strongest wind speeds in history, Lt. Gov. Todd Lamb said.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
A section of a bridge outside of Oklahoma City was blown off its foundation.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
The path of the tornado is clearly visible with dirt and debris painting a wide path across the Oklahoma landscape.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
The scene -- block after block of flattened homes and businesses, the gutted remains of a hospital and hits on two elementary schools -- left even seasoned veterans of Oklahoma's infamous tornadoes reeling.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
Photos: Photos: Destruction from above
The path of destruction from above —
View more galleries: Deadly tornado hits Oklahoma City area and The devastating Oklahoma tornado of 1999.
PHOTO:
David McNeese/Getty Images for CNN
A few hours later, Moore Mayor Glenn Lewis told CNN that he doesn’t expect the death toll will rise past 24, saying, “I think that will stand.”
“We feel like we have basically gone from rescue and searching to recovery,” Lewis said.
– Mick Cornett, Oklahoma City mayor, said full electric service should be restored to the Draper Water Treatment Plant on Tuesday. Customers should eventually notice normal water pressure, he said. The storm knocked out power to the plant and authorities put the facility on generator power.
– Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano will travel to Oklahoma on Wednesday to meet with state and local officials and “ensure that first responders are receiving the assistance they need in ongoing response and recovery efforts to the severe weather that impacted the region, ” DHS announced. Napolitano also will travel to Joplin for the second anniversary of the devastating tornado that struck that community.
– Kevin Durant, star of the NBA’s Oklahoma City Thunder, pledged $1 million through his family foundation to American Red Cross disaster relief efforts in Oklahoma, the Red Cross said Tuesday.
– The tornado tore through a 17-mile path, the National Weather Service said. The agency said survey crews indicated that the twister began 4.4 miles west of the city of Newcastle and ended 4.8 miles east of the city of Moore.
– At least 237 people were injured, the state’s Office of Emergency Management said Tuesday, citing the Health Department.
– Oklahoma officials revised the death toll to 24, down from 51. Nine of the fatalities are children.
– One of those is Janae Hornsby, who was among those killed at Plaza Woods Elementary School, her father told CNN’s Anderson Cooper. “She was the best kid anybody could have. She was Janae,” Joshua Hornsby said. “She was a ball of energy, a ball of love.”
– State Rep. Mark McBride, a Republican, said he and his family have endured tornadoes for decades but “this is the worst thing” he’s ever seen.
–President Barack Obama said he doesn’t yet know the “full extent” of the damage. “We don’t know both the human and economic losses that may have occurred,” he said Tuesday. “Oklahoma needs to get everything it needs right away” to recover, he said.
–New York’s governor expressed his sympathy for Oklahomans in the aftermath of the “horrific tornado.” “Here in New York we know firsthand the devastation and pain caused by natural disasters, and in difficult times like these we, more than ever, stand with our fellow Americans,” Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday.
– The storm system behind Monday’s twister and several on Sunday is threatening a large swath of the United States on Tuesday, putting 53 million people at risk of severe weather. In the bull’s-eye Tuesday are parts of north-central Texas, southeastern Oklahoma, and northern Arkansas and Louisiana, according to the National Weather Service.
– Oklahoma first and foremost needs donations to rebuild, Fallin told CNN.
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
Rescuers search through rubble in Shawnee, Oklahoma, on Monday, May 20. A tornado outbreak hit in the Midwest and Plains on Sunday and Monday, the deadliest hitting Moore, Oklahoma, on Monday.
PHOTO:
XINHUA /LANDOV
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
Massive piles of debris cover the ground after a powerful tornado ripped through Moore, Oklahoma, on May 20. View photos related to the Moore tornado.
PHOTO:
Brett Deering/Getty Images
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
A deadly tornado destroys cars and demolishes structures in the town of Moore, near Oklahoma City, on Monday, May 20.
PHOTO:
Richard Rowe/Reuters/Landov
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
A volunteer helps clean up a mobile home on May 20 after it was overturned on a day earlier near Shawnee, Oklahoma.
PHOTO:
Brett Deering/Getty Images
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
Jean McAdams' mobile home near Shawnee, Oklahoma, lies overturned on May 20.
PHOTO:
Brett Deering/Getty Images
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
President Barack Obama talks on the phone with Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin from the Oval Office on May 20. The president expressed his concern for those who have been affected by the severe weather.
PHOTO:
Pete Souza/White House Photo
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
Tom and Ronda Clark get help with cleanup on May 20, after their property near Shawnee was damaged by a tornado on May 19.
PHOTO:
Brett Deering/Getty Images)
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
Lonnie Langston says his garage was swept off the concrete pad next to his house by a tornado near Shawnee.
PHOTO:
Brett Deering/Getty Images
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
Shawnee residents embrace on May 20 as they search through the remains of their home.
PHOTO:
BILL WAUGH/Reuters/LANDOV
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
A home in Shawnee sits in ruin after being hit by a tornado on Sunday, May 19.
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MARCUS DIPAOLA/Xinhua /Landov
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
A twister stretches toward the ground near South Haven, Kansas, on May 19.
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GENE BLEVINS/Reuters/Landov
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
Residents repair the roof of a neighbor's damaged house after a tree fell on it in Shawnee on May 19.
PHOTO:
GENE BLEVINS/Reuters/Landov
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
A woman waits to be allowed back to her home after a tornado swept through Shawnee on May 19.
PHOTO:
BILL WAUGH/Reuters/Landov
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
Storm chaser and videographer Brad Mack records a tornado touchdown in South Haven, Kansas, on May 19.
PHOTO:
GENE BLEVINS/Reuters/Landov
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
A tractor-trailer lies on its side on Interstate 40 while another is broken open on the road below after falling from the overpass after a tornado strike near Highway 177 north of Shawnee on May 19.
PHOTO:
BILL WAUGH/Reuters/Landov
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
A tornado touches down near Wichita, Kansas, on Sunday, May 19.
PHOTO:
Travis Heying/Wichita Eagle/MCT/landov
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
Debris from a mobile home park west of Shawnee litters the ground on May 19. An estimated 300 homes were damaged or destroyed across Oklahoma, Red Cross spokesman Ken Garcia said.
PHOTO:
BILL WAUGH/Reuters/Landov
Photos: Photos: Tornadoes strike Midwest
Tornadoes wreak havoc in Midwest —
Lightning strikes in Clearwater, Kansas, on May 19.
PHOTO:
GENE BLEVINS/Reuters/Landov
– About 34,000 customers remained without power Tuesday night after a powerful tornado slammed the Oklahoma City region
– Personnel have rescued 101 people from rubble, Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management representative Terri Watkins said Tuesday morning. Watkins cited an Oklahoma Highway Patrol tally of rescues from all agencies.
– Some of the children killed at Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore, drowned in a basement area there, Oklahoma Lt. Gov. Todd Lamb told CNN on Tuesday morning. “My understanding, this school … Plaza Towers, they had a basement. Quite frankly, don’t mean to be graphic, but that’s why some of the children drowned, because they were in the basement area,” he said. Officials have said the storm killed at least seven children at the school.
– Obama signed a disaster declaration Monday night, a White House statement said. The declaration means federal emergency aid will supplement local recovery efforts.
– World leaders, including those in France, Germany, Pakistan and Spain, passed along their condolences. Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II expressed her “deepest sympathies” to those affected and Pope Francis urged people to pray for families of those who’ve died, “especially those who lost young children.”
– The three high schools in the school district of Moore still will have graduation ceremonies on Saturday at the Cox Convention Center in Oklahoma City, Superintendent Susan Pierce said Tuesday.
– Otherwise, though, the city’s public schools will be closed for the rest of the year, school district spokeswoman Anna Trowbridge tells CNN. The last day of school was supposed to be Thursday.
– The superintendent of schools in Joplin, Missouri – which was struck by a tornado in 2011 – is expected to fly to Oklahoma on Tuesday night, said Oklahoma education department spokeswoman Sherry Fair.
Joplin’s C.J. Huff is set to discuss the situation in Moore with the Oklahoma education chief Janet Baresi, on Wednesday.
– Country singer Toby Keith said his sister’s house was among those hit by Monday’s tornado. “She gets to keep her stuff, but her house is not livable,” Keith said.
While there’s no date, lineup or location set, Keith says he’s gotten “500 text messages from people all over the music world” asking about a potential benefit concert.