Tornadoes Kill at Least 32 in 3 States

05/05/2003| IslamWeb

Swarms of violent thunderstorms and tornadoes crashed through the nation's midsection, killing at least 32 people in Kansas, Missouri and Tennessee. Eight people were missing in this hard-hit town. Houses across the region were blown apart by Sunday's storms, trees were uprooted and power lines and other debris blocked roads. Travelers were evacuated from the terminals at Kansas City's main airport and given shelter in tunnels. In Pierce City, not a home or business was left untouched in the town of nearly 1,400, and wreckage made it impossible to walk the streets. Two bodies had been pulled from the rubble of the town's nearly leveled National Guard Armory. Officials initially feared the eight missing were killed in the armory, where several people had taken shelter. But after sunrise Monday authorities had found no sign of anyone else, and regional emergency official Glenn Dittmar said he was "99 1/2 percent" sure that no one else would be found there. "I've never been in anything like this. It was absolutely terrible," said Pierce City clerk Julie Johnson, who rode out the storm in the armory bathroom. The storms were blamed for at least 14 deaths in Missouri, seven in Kansas and 11 in Tennessee. One tornado carved a 65-mile path across West Tennessee, said meteorologist Gene Rench at the National Weather Service in Memphis. They were part of a huge weather system that rolled across the Midwest and parts of the South, and also spawned twisters in Arkansas, South Dakota and Nebraska. Damage in Arkansas included wrecked homes and businesses, power outages and overturned trucks. Hail as big as baseballs hammered parts of South Dakota. By midmorning Monday, thunderstorms were racing eastward through the Ohio and Tennessee valleys. Some 24,000 homes and businesses lost power in Louisville, Ky., utility officials said. In Tennessee, a state of emergency was declared in Madison County, including the hard-hit city of Jackson. Eleven bodies had been taken to Jackson-Madison County General Hospital, said spokeswoman Jan Boud. Much of Jackson had no power Monday and the hospital was operating off a generator, Boud said. "It's like downtown Baghdad," lawyer Joe Byrd said of the damage in Jackson. Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius declared seven counties disaster areas. Eighty homes were damaged or destroyed in Kansas' Crawford County, at least 20 of them in the Franklin area, said county emergency management director Edlon Bedene. "It wiped out a third of the town, I hate to say it," Bedene said. "The trees are like somebody came in and cut them off 10 feet above the ground. It's a mess." Several homes were severely damaged in Kansas City, Kan. "My daughter's room is gone, but she's OK," resident Jodee Nirschl said, her voice breaking and tears coming to her eyes. "As long as I have my kids and my husband, I'll be OK." In the southeast Kansas town of Franklin, about a third of the town was wiped out, said Eldon Bedene, Crawford County emergency management director. Dogs were brought in from Wichita to search through the debris. At Kansas City, Mo., International Airport, officials stopped all flights and evacuated the terminals. Passengers were ushered into tunnels leading to parking garages until the storm passed. Missouri Gov. Bob Holden toured Northmoor, a small town in Platte County, where 25 to 30 homes were damaged or destroyed. The town's City Hall and police station also were damaged. "I had to hold on with all my strength," said resident Charles Tholl, who was with his girlfriend and five children when the storm hit. "It was scary. It felt like the house was twirling." **PHOTO CAPTION*** Rescue workers talk outside the National Guard Armory in Pierce City, Mo in the early morning hours of Monday May 5, 2003 after a tornado ripped through the area. Nine people were feared dead in the city's damaged National Guard Armory, Lawrence County Sheriff Doug Seneker said. Two bodies were pulled from the rubble. (AP Photo/John S. Stewart)