Tornadoes Rip Across Midwest; 89 Dead in Joplin, Mo.

Rescue workers searched today for victims of fierce storms that ripped through several Midwestern states this weekend, killing at least 89 people in Joplin, Mo.

The tornado blasted a four mile wide path through the city and left trapped survivors crying out for help this morning.

"You see pictures of World War II, the devastation and all that with the bombing. That's really what it looked like," Kerry Sachetta, the principal of Joplin High School, which was mangled by the tornado. "I couldn't even make out the side of the building. It was total devastation in my view. I just couldn't believe what I saw."

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Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency Sunday evening and activated the Missouri National Guard in response to the destruction.

St. John's Regional Medical Center in Joplin was evacuated after it took a direct hit from the tornado. Every window in the facility was blown out and the top two floors were blown off, ABC News affiliate KMBC reported.

Hospital spokeswoman Cora Scott told the station that 183 patients were in the hospital at the time and the facility only had five minutes warning that the tornado would strike. More than 100 patients have since been evacuated to other hospitals, Scott said.

Seven people have been reported dead at a nursing home, according to police reports.

In the city of about 50,000 people 160 miles south of Kansas City, the tornado was reported to be a mile wide, with winds of nearly 200 mph that ravaged the area.

Kelley Fritz, a 45 year old resident of Joplin, when out with her family after the storm to survey the damage. "My sons had deceased children in their arms when they came back," said Fritz. "My husband and I went out and saw two or three dead bodies on the ground."

Residents begin digging through the rubble of their home after it was destroyed by a tornado that hit Joplin, Mo., Sunday evening, May 22, 2011.
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Authorities estimate 25 to 30 percent of Joplin has been damaged by the tornado, with highly populated areas having been hit by the storm.

Cries could be heard early this morning from people trapped below the wreckage, while crews have been pulling out bodies and lining them up in the streets for loved ones to identify, according to ABC News affiliate KODE.

There is fear of gas explosions in the storm's aftermath and authorities are telling people not to light any cigarettes because so many gas pipes are broken, causing concern that what's left of Joplin might go up in flames, KODE reported.

"These storms have caused extensive damage across Missouri, and they continue to pose significant risk to lives and property," Gov. Nixon said. "As a state, we are deploying every agency and resource available to keep Missouri families safe, search for the missing, provide emergency medical care, and begin to recover."

State and local law enforcement agencies, including fire mutual aid, are coordinating search and rescue and recovery operations. The Missouri State Highway Patrol sent troopers from other regions to help local officers in southern Missouri deal with the destruction, the governor's office said in a statement.

Keith Stammer, emergency management director for the city of Joplin, told "Good Morning America" that all 25 of the city's sirens did activate, and that there was a 20-minute notice from when the sirens were activated before there was a first report of a tornado strike.

"At the moment its surreal, our landmarks are gone -- road signs, places where you know to turn -- we're doing search and rescue, going house to house on that six mile strip," Stammer told "GMA."

Jeff Piotrowsky, a storm chaser who was in Joplin at the time the storm hit and spoke to "GMA" about witnessing the tornado form over the city, said, "We saw a big cloud mass and we knew it was going to start tornadoing. It quickly brewed to a half mile wide, then three-quarters ? then it came to the heart of the city," Piotrowsky said, adding that "there was a warning, about 17 minutes."

Federal Emergency Management Agency Region VII set up a response coordination center and sent a liaison team to the Missouri state emergency communications center, according to a FEMA official.

"Basically it's an all-out effort to get all of the most important resources available for this type of situation down as soon as possible," a state emergency management representative said.

In total, 70 tornadoes were produced by the storm system since Friday, including at least 47 tornadoes Sunday. Tornadoes were reported in seven states from the Canadian border to Oklahoma. Warnings and watches were posted from Texas to Michigan.

President Obama released a statement on the emergency late Sunday night, saying, "Michelle and I send our deepest condolences to the families of all those who lost their lives in the tornadoes and severe weather that struck Joplin, Missouri as well as communities across the Midwest today. We commend the heroic efforts by those who have responded and who are working to help their friends and neighbors at this very difficult time," Obama said in the statement.

"At my direction, FEMA is working with the affected areas' state and local officials to support response and recovery efforts, and the federal government stands ready to help our fellow Americans as needed," he added.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/tornadoes-rip-midwest-89-dead-joplin-mo/story?id=13662193

We saw the coverage of this last night, and my mother was saying Joplin has NEVER been hit by anything like this. And all this stuff keeps happening somewhere within our vicinity and she is getting worried. She never used to worry but after my sister was caught in the one in Mapleton, she is getting very nervous about us going into summer when we get all the severe storms.

This is very sad. The footage is hard to watch because it is so hard to imagine what the survivors are feeling.

I could not even imagine what it must be like to suddenly have everything you have ever worked for in your life taken away in a matter of minutes.

Supernova wrote:We saw the coverage of this last night, and my mother was saying Joplin has NEVER been hit by anything like this. And all this stuff keeps happening somewhere within our vicinity and she is getting worried. She never used to worry but after my sister was caught in the one in Mapleton, she is getting very nervous about us going into summer when we get all the severe storms.

If I lived in an area that could be hit by a tornado I would make sure my basement would be readily accessible in case I had to make a run for it. With the storms we have had here in the NorthEast, I fear for floods!

I heard about it. How heartbreaking - esp. seeing the footage!!!! I live in an area at risk for earthquakes, with "The Big One" predicated to come any year but mostly we just get minor tremors that you usually don't even notice.