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Missouri Tornado Photo Gallery
Associated Press | © 2011 YellowBrix, Inc.
May 23, 2011
May 22, JOPLIN, Mo. – A massive tornado that blasted a four-mile path across southwestern Missouri slammed into the city of Joplin with cataclysmic force.
The tornado Sunday night ripped into a hospital, destroyed neighborhoods and upended cars.
An unknown number were killed in Joplin. Officials struggling to communicate without power and cellphone service were leery of putting a hard figure on the death toll.
Asked about a report that 24 people had died, city spokeswoman Lynn Onstot said grimly that officials were “afraid it may be more. … Our fear is that’s a low number.”
The Missouri National Guard was searching for the injured throughout the night.
