![]() The President is sending FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate to Missouri to ensure that the state has all the support it needs. "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. 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. 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. Warnings and watches were posted from Texas to Michigan. Tornadoes were reported in seven states from the Canadian border to Oklahoma. In total, 70 tornadoes were produced by the storm system since Friday, including at least 47 tornadoes Sunday. "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. 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."įederal 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. 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. ![]() "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." 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. 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. State and local law enforcement agencies, including fire mutual aid, are coordinating search and rescue and recovery operations. "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." "These storms have caused extensive damage across Missouri, and they continue to pose significant risk to lives and property," Gov. ![]() There is also a 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. More severe weather, including high winds, rain and hail, is expected Tuesday before the storms finally abate later in the week, according to Accuweather meteorologist Mark Paquette. More than 100 patients have since been evacuated to other hospitals, Scott said. 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. Every window in the facility was blown out and the top two floors were blown off, ABC News affiliate KMBC reported. Patients and staff have been evacuated as damage suffered during the storm has affected the structural integrity of the building. John's Regional Medical Center in Joplin when it took a direct hit from the tornado. ![]() Nixon declared a state of emergency Sunday evening and activated the Missouri National Guard in response to the destruction.įour people were killed at St. "I couldn't even make out the side of the building. That's really what it looked like," Kerry Sachetta, the principal of Joplin High School, which was mangled by the tornado. "You see pictures of World War II, the devastation and all that with the bombing. One man was saved by rescuers after texting his friend his location and the words, "I'm alive."
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