Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Crews race to find survivors of Oklahoma twister
MOORE, Okla. (AP) — Emergency crews searched the broken remnants of an Oklahoma City suburb today for survivors of a massive tornado that flattened homes and demolished an elementary school. At least 24 people were killed, including at least nine children, and those numbers were expected to climb.
The state medical examiner’s office cut the estimated death toll by more than half but warned that the number was likely to climb again. Gov. Mary Fallin said authorities did not know how many people were still missing, but they vowed to account for every resident.
“We will rebuild, and we will regain our strength,” said Fallin, who went on a flyover of the area and described it as “hard to look at.”
Amy Elliott, a spokeswoman for the medical examiner, said she believes some victims were counted twice in the early chaos of the storm that struck Monday afternoon. Downed communication lines and problems sharing information with officers exacerbated the problem, she said.
“It was a very eventful night,” Elliott said. “I truly expect that they’ll find more today.”
Authorities initially said as many as 51 people were dead, including 20 children.