February 11, 2009

AP

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Photo: Looking west from I-35 and Waterloo Rd at the tornado that hit Edmond in the area of Broadway and Waterloo Tuesday Feb. 10. 2009. By Steven Maupin, The Oklahoman

Photo: Michael Jerry walks out of his tornado-damaged business after a twister knocked down power lines and damaged homes and businesses on Tuesday in Edmond, Okla. (Bill Waugh / AP)

A massive tornado ripped through a southern Oklahoma town Tuesday evening, killing at least 15 people and injuring dozens of others, local news media reported Wednesday.

Rescue crews were searching for victims in the rubble of buildings destroyed or damaged by the tornado in Lone Grove, a town about 100 miles south of Oklahoma City, said Chester Agan, assistant emergency manager for Carter County.

"They just got one lady out from under a trailer ... but she was just injured," Agan said.

The town's death toll rose to 15 early Wednesday, the Oklahoman newspaper reported. Another 14 people sustained serious injuries, said Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management spokeswoman Michelann Ooten.

The twister tore a half-mile swath through the town of Lone Grove shortly before 7:30 p.m., state officials said.

Photo: Clouds roll over Oklahoma City, Okla. (AP)

A twister also touched down in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, where homes and businesses were damaged, but only three minor injuries were reported. A tornado also was reported in north-central Oklahoma and six homes were destroyed near the Oklahoma City suburb of Edmond.

The tornado in Lone Grove was one of several unusual February twisters that touched down in Oklahoma, including in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, where homes and businesses were damaged but only three minor injuries were reported.

Six homes were destroyed near the Oklahoma City suburb of Edmond, where a car mechanic shop and the vehicles inside were twisted into a ball of metal.

"It's just surreal," said shop manager Michael Jerry, who had waited out the storm at home. "You just don't believe it. ... The steel girders are in a ball."

In northwest Oklahoma City, the twister apparently developed near Wiley Post Airport and headed northeast, damaging shopping centers, restaurants and an apartment complex. Signs were stripped, and cars were damaged.

Photo: Daniel Butler, a Logan County, Okla. employee, moves storm debris from North Broadway near Waterloo Road, to clear the roadway after winds from a tornado knocked down power lines, damaged homes and businesses Tuesday afternoon, Feb. 10, 2009, in Edmond, Okla. (Bill Waugh / AP)

Tornado sirens warned residents the storm was approaching, but some were still caught off guard.

"I can't believe we didn't hear it. You know how you normally hear it coming," said Traci Keil, 37.

Between downpours of rain, some residents wandered out to snap pictures of the wreckage or to clear debris blocking cars.

"My kids are still in the closet and won't come out," Keil said as a third wave of downpours approached her apartment complex, more than an hour after the twister hit.

Severe weather also caused damage and power outages in Oklahoma City and western Texas.

Photo: Utility poles block part of an intersection after they were blown over in Oklahoma City, Tuesday , Feb. 10, 2009. A series of storms, with at least one tornado reported, swept through central Oklahoma Tuesday afternoon. (David Mcdaniel / AP)

Power lines littered an intersection where motorists were told to stay in their cars until crews could clear the lines.

Oklahoma Gas and Electric reported about 8,900 customers without power, nearly 3,500 in Lone Grove, according to its Web site. Less than 1,000 Oklahoma City area customers were still in the dark. Eighteen power poles were snapped.

The Oklahoma County Election Board was preparing to tally votes for a school board election when a large area north of the state Capitol lost power about an hour before the polls closed. Election board secretary Doug Sanderson said election materials would be locked up overnight, and workers would start tallying on Wednesday.

Besides the tornadoes, one of which was reported in north-central Oklahoma, strong winds caused damage in southern and central Oklahoma, according to state emergency management officials.

Photo: Feb. 10: Hail pours out from a home down-spout during a server storm which later produced a tornado which knocked down power lines, damaged homes and businesses in Edmond, Okla. (AP)

In the area of the fatal tornado, one house was damaged in the town of Wilson, officials said. In Logan County, 20 homes were damaged near Henney, east of Guthrie. No injuries were reported in either town.

Tornadoes are most numerous in Oklahoma in the spring, but can occur at any time, Smith said. The threat for twisters extended into early Wednesday, with the weather service issuing a tornado watch for southeastern Oklahoma and northeast Texas.

Winds of more than 60 mph caused dust storms in western Texas that reduced visibility so much some roads have been closed, the National Weather Service said. It said wind speeds reached 88 mph in parts of Texas, leaving downed trees and power outages Tuesday night.

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