NORMAN, Okla. (ABP) – Violent storm systems continued to wreak havoc in the nation’s mid-section May 24, as tornadoes killed at least 13 people in three states.
Thunderstorms hampered rescue efforts in Joplin, Mo., where 120 people died May 22 in the deadliest tornado in 60 years. From there the system moved west, spawning several tornadoes that touched down in Oklahoma City and its suburbs as Tuesday-afternoon rush-hour drivers struggled to get home from work.
At least eight people were reported dead, including a 15-month-old boy whose 3-year-old brother was missing.
Mitch Randall, pastor of NorthHaven Church in Norman, Okla., wrote in a May 25 blog that he and his family sought shelter at the University of Oklahoma Law School.
“Our hearts and prayers go out to the families who lost loved ones yesterday,” Randall said. “It makes no sense. It saddens our hearts. It hurts our souls.”
The day before Randall reported sending $250 in church funds to the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Missouri to help them minister to people in Joplin. Randall said that tragedy hit home to him, because his grandparents and other family live in the area.
“Thankfully, my family is doing well,” he wrote. “However, there are so many other families attempting to pick up the pieces of their lives while at the same time grieving and mourning over those they have lost.”
Tuesday’s storm system killed two people in Kansas and three in Arkansas. The National Weather Service forecast predicted another major severe storm outbreak for Wednesday, May 25, with tornadoes most likely in parts of Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri, Mississippi and Tennessee.
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Bob Allen is managing editor of Associated Baptist Press.