TUESDAY TOP NEWS STORY:
Video: Tornado before & after captured
in cellphone video (AP)
Nomaan Merchant & Tim Talley, AP
MOORE, Okla. — Search and rescue crews worked through the night after a monstrous tornado barreled through the Oklahoma City suburbs, demolishing an elementary school and reducing homes to piles of splintered wood. At least 51 people were killed, including at least 20 children, and those numbers were expected to climb, officials said Tuesday.
The storm stripped leaves off trees and left scores of blocks in Moore barren and dark. Rescuers walked through neighborhoods where Monday’s powerful twister flattened home after home, listening for voices calling out from the rubble. A helicopter buzzed above, shining lights on crews below.
As Monday turned into Tuesday, the town of Moore, a community of 41,000 people 10 miles south of the city, braced for another long, harrowing day.
“As long as we are here … we are going to hold out hope that we will find survivors,” said Trooper Betsy Randolph, a spokeswoman for the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.
More than 120 people were being treated at hospitals, including about 50 children. Amy Elliott, spokeswoman for the Oklahoma Medical Examiner’s Office, said Tuesday that there could be as many as 40 more fatalities from Monday’s tornado.
On Monday evening, families anxiously waited at churches to hear if their loved ones were OK. A man with a megaphone stood near St. Andrews United Methodist Church and called out the names of surviving children. Children and parents hugged as they reunited. Other parents waited, hoping to hear their sons’ and daughters’ names as the night dragged-on.
Read more of this story at Yahoo News
• Crews Work in Moore Through the Night and Into the Morning Looking for Survivors (The Oklahoman)
• Chaos Reigns at Okla. Schools Struck by Tornado (USA Today)
• Tornadoes in America: The Oklahoma Disaster in Context (The Atlantic)
• Houston Red Cross volunteers Head to Oklahoma (KPRC 2 News)
LOCAL AREA HEADLINES:
- Suspected drunken driver who killed deputy was previously deported (Chron.com)
- Former Teacher Lashes out at HISD Apollo 20 Program (KRIV 26 News)
- Source of E. coli outbreak linked to ground beef from local restaurant (KHOU 11 News)
- Big Buses Are Returning To Houston Streets (KUHF Public Radio)
- West Nile Virus Approaches, Proving Hurricanes Aren’t the Only Danger to Houstonians This Time of Year (Houston Press)
- Theft of metal tree stakes in Houston park overwhelms nonprofit (Chron.com)
- Waller elects its first minority councilman: He was instrumental in convicting corrupt 5 (Houston Chronicle)
- Key Charge Against Ex-BP Official In Spill Case Dismissed (KUHF Public Radio)
STATE HEADLINES:
- Budget Agreement Hinges on Key Legislation (Texas Tribune)
- Key Water Measure a No Show in Texas House on Monday (State Impact Texas)
- House Gives Early OK to Medicaid Expansion Ban (Texas Tribune)
- State Sen. Dan Patrick: ‘The Era Of CSCOPE Lesson Plans Has Come To An End’ (KUHF Public Radio)
- House Backs Mental Health Jail Diversion Program (Texas Tribune)
NATION & WORLD:
- As Immigrants Take On American Habits, Their Health Suffers (New York Times)
- Church Whistle-Blowers Join Forces on Abuse (New York Times)
- Republicans Informed of IRS Investigation Last Year (ABC News)
- Latest Health Hurdle: Buying Insurance Without A Bank Account (NPR)