This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2013/05/22/us/oklahoma-tornado.html

The article has changed 19 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 7 Version 8
Crews Search for Survivors in Oklahoma After Tornado Crews Search for Survivors in Oklahoma After Tornado
(41 minutes later)
MOORE, Okla. — Emergency crews and volunteers continued to work Tuesday in a frantic search for survivors of a massive tornado that ripped through parts of Oklahoma City and its suburbs, killing dozens of people and flattening whatever lay in its path, including a hospital and at least two schools.MOORE, Okla. — Emergency crews and volunteers continued to work Tuesday in a frantic search for survivors of a massive tornado that ripped through parts of Oklahoma City and its suburbs, killing dozens of people and flattening whatever lay in its path, including a hospital and at least two schools.
Much of the tornado damage was in the suburb of Moore, where rescue workers struggled to make their way through streets cut off by debris and around downed power lines to those who were feared trapped under mountains of rubble. The crews, using with thermal-imaging equipment and dogs, sifted through piles of red brick, steel beams, utility poles, and upended cars where houses and shops once stood.Much of the tornado damage was in the suburb of Moore, where rescue workers struggled to make their way through streets cut off by debris and around downed power lines to those who were feared trapped under mountains of rubble. The crews, using with thermal-imaging equipment and dogs, sifted through piles of red brick, steel beams, utility poles, and upended cars where houses and shops once stood.
Officials said Tuesday that it was far too early to say precisely how many people had been killed, but the toll appears to be significantly less than what had been originally feared. On Monday night, Amy Elliott, the spokeswoman for the Oklahoma City medical examiner, said at least 51 people had died and 40 more bodies were on their way, but on Tuesday, Ms. Elliott said that count “is no longer accurate.” Gary Bird, the city’s fire chief, said that more than 200 people had worked overnight looking for survivors.
As of Tuesday morning, the medical examiner had confirmed 24 deaths, nine of them children, she said. “We will go through every damaged piece of property in this city,” he said, adding the authorities hoped the search would be completed by nightfall.
Hospitals in the area have treated at least 175 people, about 70 of them children. Officials said that it was still too early to say precisely how many people had been killed, but the toll appears to be significantly less than what had been originally feared. On Monday night, Amy Elliott, the spokeswoman for the Oklahoma City medical examiner, said at least 51 people had died and 40 more bodies were on their way, but on Tuesday, Ms. Elliott said that count “is no longer accurate.”
The risk of tornadoes throughout the region remained at an elevated level Tuesday, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Storm Prediction Center in Norman. As of Tuesday morning, the medical examiner had confirmed 24 deaths, nine of them children, she said. Of the dead, 20 were in Moore, and four in Oklahoma City, officials said.
President Obama, who on Monday night declared a federal disaster in five Oklahoma counties, said during brief remarks at the White House on Tuesday that the tornado had been “one of the most destructive in history,” and that he had informed aides that “Oklahoma needs to get everything it needs right away.” He said Federal Emergency Management Agency officials had been dispatched to Moore, which has a population of about 55,0000, to aid in the recovery effort. Gov. Mary Fallin told a news conference Tuesday that officials had not yet arrived at a conclusive death toll, but said that 237 people had been injured. Officials have said that number includes about 70 children.
The risk of tornadoes throughout the region remained at an elevated level Tuesday, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Storm Prediction Center in Norman, and on Tuesday afternoon, rescue efforts were being hampered by wind and rain.
President Obama, who on Monday night declared a federal disaster in five Oklahoma counties, said during brief remarks at the White House on Tuesday morning that the tornado had been “one of the most destructive in history,” and that he had informed aides that “Oklahoma needs to get everything it needs right away.” He said Federal Emergency Management Agency officials had been dispatched to Moore, which has a population of about 55,0000, to aid in the recovery effort.
“For all those who’ve been affected, we recognize that you face a long road ahead,” Mr. Obama said. “In some cases, there will be enormous grief that has to be absorbed. But you will not travel that path alone.”“For all those who’ve been affected, we recognize that you face a long road ahead,” Mr. Obama said. “In some cases, there will be enormous grief that has to be absorbed. But you will not travel that path alone.”
Ms. Fallin called the tornado one of the most “horrific” disasters the state has ever faced, but pledged to rebuild. After taking an aerial tour of the area, she said the trail of ruin may be 20-miles long and as much as two miles wide.
“ It is hard to look at,” she said. “There’s just sticks and bricks.”
A continuing focus of concern Tuesday was the Plaza Towers Elementary School, reduced to a pile of twisted metal and toppled walls. Rescue workers were able to pull several children from the rubble, and on Tuesday, as a chilly rain swept through the area, crews were still struggling to cut through fallen beams and clear debris.A continuing focus of concern Tuesday was the Plaza Towers Elementary School, reduced to a pile of twisted metal and toppled walls. Rescue workers were able to pull several children from the rubble, and on Tuesday, as a chilly rain swept through the area, crews were still struggling to cut through fallen beams and clear debris.
“We are still definitely in search-and-rescue mode.” Jayme Shelton, a Moore spokesman said Tuesday morning.“We are still definitely in search-and-rescue mode.” Jayme Shelton, a Moore spokesman said Tuesday morning.
At Briarwood Elementary School in Oklahoma City, on the border with Moore, cars were thrown through the facade and the roof was torn off.At Briarwood Elementary School in Oklahoma City, on the border with Moore, cars were thrown through the facade and the roof was torn off.
“Numerous neighborhoods were completely leveled,” Sgt. Gary Knight of the Oklahoma City Police Department said by telephone on Monday night. “Neighborhoods just wiped clean.”“Numerous neighborhoods were completely leveled,” Sgt. Gary Knight of the Oklahoma City Police Department said by telephone on Monday night. “Neighborhoods just wiped clean.”
He said debris and damage to roadways, along with heavy traffic, were hindering emergency responders as they raced to the affected areas.He said debris and damage to roadways, along with heavy traffic, were hindering emergency responders as they raced to the affected areas.
Shortly before midnight, the area near the Plaza Towers school was eerily quiet and shrouded in darkness from a widespread power outage. Local authorities and F.B.I. agents patrolled the streets, restricting access to the school.Shortly before midnight, the area near the Plaza Towers school was eerily quiet and shrouded in darkness from a widespread power outage. Local authorities and F.B.I. agents patrolled the streets, restricting access to the school.
Half a mile away, the only sounds on Southwest Fourth Street were of barking dogs and tires on wet pavement littered with debris. Hovering in the sky, a helicopter shined a spotlight on the damaged neighborhoods. In the darkness, the century-old Moore Cemetery was a ghostly wreck: women’s clothing and blankets clung to the branches of tilting trees and twisted sheets of metal ripped from nearby buildings or homes were strewn among the graves. Many headstones had been pushed flat to the ground by the wind.Half a mile away, the only sounds on Southwest Fourth Street were of barking dogs and tires on wet pavement littered with debris. Hovering in the sky, a helicopter shined a spotlight on the damaged neighborhoods. In the darkness, the century-old Moore Cemetery was a ghostly wreck: women’s clothing and blankets clung to the branches of tilting trees and twisted sheets of metal ripped from nearby buildings or homes were strewn among the graves. Many headstones had been pushed flat to the ground by the wind.
The tornado touched down at 2:56 p.m., 16 minutes after the first warning went out, and traveled for 20 miles, said Keli Pirtle, a spokeswoman for the National Weather Service in Norman, Okla. It was on the ground for 40 minutes, she said. It first struck the town of Newcastle before thrashing its way to Moore, about 10 miles away.The tornado touched down at 2:56 p.m., 16 minutes after the first warning went out, and traveled for 20 miles, said Keli Pirtle, a spokeswoman for the National Weather Service in Norman, Okla. It was on the ground for 40 minutes, she said. It first struck the town of Newcastle before thrashing its way to Moore, about 10 miles away.
Ms. Pirtle said preliminary data suggested that it was a Category 4 tornado on the Enhanced Fujita scale, which measures tornado strength on a scale of 0 to 5. The tornado’s winds were estimated to have been at least 166 miles per hour. A definitive assessment will be available later Tuesday, she said. Ms. Pirtle said preliminary data suggested that it was a Category 4 tornado on the Enhanced Fujita scale, which measures tornado strength on a scale of 0 to 5. The tornado’s winds were estimated to have been at least 166 miles per hour and perhaps as strong as 200 miles per hour. A definitive assessment will be available later Tuesday, she said.
Severe weather is common in the region this time of year, and Moore has seen other tornadoes, including in May 1999, when a tornado with record wind speeds of 302 m.p.h. destroyed much of the town, which was then rebuilt.Severe weather is common in the region this time of year, and Moore has seen other tornadoes, including in May 1999, when a tornado with record wind speeds of 302 m.p.h. destroyed much of the town, which was then rebuilt.
Aerial photographs showed that the destruction caused by Monday’s tornado was spread over a vast area, with blocks upon blocks of homes and businesses reduced to cinder blocks and scraps of wood and metal. On Monday, Kelcy Trowbridge, her husband and their three young children piled into their neighbor’s cellar just outside of Moore and huddled together for about five minutes, wrapped under a blanket as the tornado screamed above them, debris smashing against the cellar door.
Kelcy Trowbridge, her husband and their three young children piled into their neighbor’s cellar just outside of Moore and huddled together for about five minutes, wrapped under a blanket as the tornado screamed above them, debris smashing against the cellar door.
They emerged to find their home flattened and the family car resting upside down a few houses away. Ms. Trowbridge’s husband rushed toward what was left of their home and began sifting through the debris, then stopped, and told her to call the police.They emerged to find their home flattened and the family car resting upside down a few houses away. Ms. Trowbridge’s husband rushed toward what was left of their home and began sifting through the debris, then stopped, and told her to call the police.
He had found the body of a little girl, about 2 or 3 years old, she said.He had found the body of a little girl, about 2 or 3 years old, she said.
“He knew she was already gone,” Ms. Trowbridge said. “When the police got there, he just bawled.”“He knew she was already gone,” Ms. Trowbridge said. “When the police got there, he just bawled.”
She said: “My neighborhood is gone. It’s flattened. Demolished. The street is gone. The next block over, it’s in pieces.”She said: “My neighborhood is gone. It’s flattened. Demolished. The street is gone. The next block over, it’s in pieces.”
Sarah Johnson was forced to rush from her home in Moore to the hospital as the storm raged when her 4-year-old daughter, Shellbie, suffered an asthma attack. With hail raining down, she put a hard hat on her daughter as she raced into the emergency room and hunkered down.
“We knew it was coming — all the nurses were down on the ground so we got down on the ground,” Ms. Johnson said from the Journey Church in nearby Norman, where she had sought shelter.
At the hospital, she said, she shoved her daughter next to a wall and threw a mattress on top of her. After the storm passed, debris and medical equipment were scattered around, she said.
Ms. Johnson said she and her daughter were safe, but she had yet to find her husband.
Some parts of Moore emerged seemingly untouched by the tornado. Bea Carruth, who lives about 20 blocks from where the storm struck, said her home and others in her neighborhood appeared to be fine.
Ms. Carruth had ridden out the tornado as she usually does, at her son’s house nearby, the hail pounding away on the cellar where they had taken shelter. Tornadoes have long been a part of life in Moore, she said, and a few times a year, in a well-worn ritual, she goes into her son’s cellar when the sirens go off.

John Eligon and Manny Fernandez reported from Moore, and Michael Schwirtz from New York. Reporting was contributed by Nick Oxford from Moore, Leslie Metzger and Kathleen Johnson from Norman, Okla., Dan Frosch from Denver, Timothy Williams and Christine Hauser from New York and Peter Baker from Washington.

John Eligon and Manny Fernandez reported from Moore, and Michael Schwirtz from New York. Reporting was contributed by Nick Oxford from Moore, Leslie Metzger and Kathleen Johnson from Norman, Okla., Dan Frosch from Denver, Timothy Williams and Christine Hauser from New York and Peter Baker from Washington.