The tornados in Oklahoma

[BleAivano]

A series of video clips of the tornado.

Disaster from the sky in Oklahoma - CNN.com Video

[mr nobody]

Link is to the NWS latest public statement about the tornado in Oklahoma. It's now an EF5 rated tornado. It's nothing short of a miracle that more people weren't killed. Public Information Statements for the Tornado Outbreak of May 20, 2013

[airshifter]

I've seen a couple small ones, glad I've never been near a large tornado.

It's hard to even imagine any natural disaster that will just level your house completely, even if you are lucky enough to not have any injuries or loss of life among family. Bad stuff.

[Knock-on]

I remember 3 funnels touching down a couple of miles away from Croft at a BTCC meeting once. I think per square mile, the UK has more twisters than any other country but thankfully minor ones.

[markabilly]

I heard, on the radio, that very few homes or businesses have basements. They said that rock, just a few feet below the surface is so dense that it would require dynamite to blast out sections to make them. Appearently, the schools do not have shelters. I have a friend, that posts on another forum. He lieve in N.W. Okhaloma City. Haven't been able to get in contack with him. Praying that, that is not a bad sign.

Unfortunately one of the schools had a small basement, where some of the kids and a teacher went for shelter. When the walls came down, it trapped some of the children who were in the basement and seven of the children drowned from the water from the rain collecting in the basement.

Otherwise none of the children at the school would have died

[Knock-on]

OMG Mark, that is terrible.

I'm no storm expert but even I know tht power, gas and water lines get broken buring a major Twister hit. Any shelter should be protected against this eventuality.

How very sad.

[mr nobody]

Here is a link to the Norman, Oklahoma National Weather Service office page providing details and some interesting radar loops and Google Earth maps of the tornado track in Moore, Oklahoma. The Tornado Outbreak of May 20, 2013

[BleAivano]

Google satellite images of the devastation: Google Crisis Map

[ndegroot89]

That devastation was unreal...it's terrible that children were among those lost in this horrible disaster.

[markabilly]

OMG Mark, that is terrible.

I'm no storm expert but even I know tht power, gas and water lines get broken buring a major Twister hit. Any shelter should be protected against this eventuality.

How very sad.

It had nothing to do with any of that. It was rain water coming into the school buiding from the damaged roof and walls