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Severe storms kill at least 11 in Missouri, Okla.

Zim Hosein

Zim Hosein

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Thunderstorms and tornadoes tore across the nation's heartland Saturday evening, killing at least 11 people, mangling buildings and trapping people in rubble in areas still reeling from other recent bouts with severe weather.

A twister killed at least six people in the northeastern Oklahoma town of Picher, then skipped over the Missouri state line to wreak further death and destruction, authorities said.

The death toll in Oklahoma could climb, said state Emergency Management spokeswoman Michelann Ooten. The Picher tornado caused major damage in a 20-block area, she said.

"I know they are going through the rubble, trying to find people missing," she said. "There are numerous injuries."

At least five people died in southwestern Missouri after the storms plowed through, the National Weather Service said. Three people died after the Picher tornado hit near Seneca, about 15 miles away in Newton County, said meteorologist Bill Davis.

Other tornadoes were reported near McAlester and Haywood in Pittsburg County and in rural Pushmataha County, both in southeastern Oklahoma.

Television footage showed some destroyed outbuildings and damaged homes west of McAlester and near Haywood. At a glass plant southwest of McAlester, the storm apparently picked up a trailer and slammed it down on garbage bins.

"These are rural areas that we are in," Pittsburg County Undersheriff Richard Sexton told KFOR-TV in Oklahoma City. "These are good people coming together at this time."

In storm-weary Arkansas, a tornado collapsed a home and a business, and there were reports of a few people trapped in buildings, said Weather Service meteorologist John Robinson.

Central Park Elementary School in the northwest Arkansas city of Bentonville had roof and window damage, and damage was also reported at Pine Creek Center School.

The storms remained active into the evening, with watches and warnings abundant across a wide swath of the Plains and South.

Tornadoes killed 13 people on Feb. 5 and another seven were killed in an outbreak on May 2. In between was freezing weather, persistent rain and river flooding that damaged residences has slowed farmers in their planting.

This breaking news story will be updated.

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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Severe storms kill at least 11 in Missouri, Okla.

WTF is w/ all the crazy weather lately? 😕🙁
 
Crazy? Nah. Just normal weather for us here in Tornado Alley. Happens every Spring. The only thing different is this is the first time since 1999 that there have been tornado related deaths in Oklahoma. The town where 6 died, Picher, is a small rural town of about 300 people. The town has actually been in the process of being abandoned/relocated due to pollution from mining back in the day. Most of the people left in the area are very poor and tend to live in substandard housing and trailers.

The storm that hit there just popped up and caught them off guard. Normally with the technology the National Weather Service and the local televisions stations here have people have in the neighborhood of a 20 minute warning. Not this time due to the sudden nature of the storms.

Seriously though...if you want to see some amazing weather technology just check out any of the stations in Tulsa or Oklahoma City. Even better, check out the National Storm Prediction Center's HQ in Norman.
 
Originally posted by: shinerburke
Crazy? Nah. Just normal weather for us here in Tornado Alley.
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Not entirely true. Number of tornadoes are way above average right now. Not at record levels, though.
 
Originally posted by: shocksyde
Originally posted by: shinerburke
Crazy? Nah. Just normal weather for us here in Tornado Alley.
Click to expand...

Not entirely true. Number of tornadoes are way above average right now. Not at record levels, though.
Click to expand...

It goes in cycles....we're just on the top end of one of the cycles right now.
 
Originally posted by: Zim Hosein
Severe storms kill at least 11 in Missouri, Okla.

WTF is w/ all the crazy weather lately? 😕🙁
Click to expand...

It's because of all the feminists, gays, and lesbians.

</Jerry Falwell>


Funny thing about tornadoes - zoom out a fair amount, and they're really little more than tiny swirls of air, or current eddies in the fluid motion of the atmosphere. Move your hand through water with some soap foam in it and you'll see similar swirls behind your hand, some of which will rotate quite rapidly.

 
Average number of tornadoes thru May from 1950-2007: 385

Number of tornadoes so far this year (not even half way thru May): 819 (not all confirmed as of yet)

The most tornadoes in one year occurred in 2003, when 1,376 tornadoes were reported.

I'll also note that 55% of tornadoes occur between April and July. We've only just gotten into that time span.

Read into those stats however you wish.
 
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