OT/update on Ok

Very sad. 51 confirmed dead. 20 of those are children. They estimate the death toll will be over 90. Over 250 injured. 39,000 without power or water.

As said below, two elementary schools were hit. One totally destroyed. Sad thing is, they kept the kids at school thinking they would be safer in that structure than in a home.

Tornado was at least 1/2 mile wide. Winds at least 200. That makes it a 4 on a scale of 5.

More severe weather in the forecast for today.

My heart grieves for those people. Cannot imagine how awful it would be to drop your child off at school and learn later that day, they had been killed.

Terrible, just terrible.

So Sad.

The news said this morning that some of the casualties were double counted so the number now is 24. Better but still pretty bad.

Terrible thing.

Think it was even wider in spots, nearly 2 miles they say.

Tho early reporting is so suspect these days, media is more concerned with being fast, and not worried about being accurate any more.... Rumor I heard is some of the kids drowned in the shelter, can't win, below ground flooded, above ground shelters were swept away in the very rare, very fierce monster this was.

Keeping the kids in the school was the right call. It was build to take most tornadoes and shelter people. This just was one of those rare, exceptional tornadoes, ground up anything in its path.

I would encourage schools to continue trying to keep kids safe, and hunkered down in the building with such short warnings, and the safety those buildings generally provide. It is the best odds of the most kids being the safest one can hope for. It is playing the odds in the right way.

As sad as it happened this time around.

Release the kids, and they, busses, and parents are all scrambling about in the open, things could be far worse as a whole....

But just a sad deal.

This forenoon they are saying official death toll is 24 total at this point in tome, was some confusion on the original 51 number and not accurate.

Paul

As of 9:30 am CDT the confirmed death toll had been lowered to 20 with 8 of them being children. Still a tragic and tough day in america.

Sorry 24 people.

Agreed.

It sounded as if there was a lot of warning but the the "normal" places to take cover just weren't up to this one. Normally a hospital is a pretty safe place that loses their outer windows in a direct strike - this was lost the top half. Schools are also usually pretty "hard" targets. Not so in the case. An interior room in the average house didn't stand a chance.

Did those elementry schools have basements for the kids/teachers to hide?