Rescuers dig for life after tornado chaos

US: US rescue teams scoured a shattered suburb for survivors Tuesday after a giant tornado tore through the outskirts of Oklahoma City, killing at least two dozen people, including nine children.

State medical examiner's office spokeswoman Amy Elliott told reporters 24 victims had been confirmed dead, scaling back from a previous count of 51 that she attributed to possible double reporting.

Seven of the dead youngsters were found at a school, she added.

Meanwhile, at least 101 people have been pulled alive from under debris, said Terri Watkins of the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management, and local broadcasters said more than 200 people have been injured. Some of the children killed by the mid-afternoon twister were buried when the two-mile wide funnel of wind -- that lasted about 45 minutes -- demolished an elementary school in the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore.

Oklahoma City lies inside the so-called “Tornado Alley” stretching from South Dakota to central Texas, an area particularly vulnerable to tornadoes.

In a sign that more chaos may be to come, the National Weather Service forecast the development of more tornadoes later Tuesday, with parts of Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas most likely to be affected.

US President Barack Obama declared a “major disaster” as crews combed the wreckage of the shattered community, where even residents with long memories of past storms were shocked by the devastation.

In televised remarks from the White House, Obama made special mention of the young victims as he mourned those lost and promised to provide survivors with the help they need to find their footing.

“The people of Moore should know that their country will remain on the ground there for them, beside them as long as it takes for their homes and schools to rebuild,” Obama said. “There are empty spaces where there used to be living rooms and bedrooms and classrooms and in time we're going to need to refill those spaces with love and laughter and community,” he added.

The killer system -- packing powerful winds of up to 200 miles per hour (322 kilometers per hour) -- flattened block after block of homes, set off fires, downing power lines and tossed cars.

Stunned weather forecasters described an epic two-mile (three-kilometer) wide mid-afternoon storm, as news helicopter footage showed a dark twister plowing through densely packed suburbs.

Monday's tornado followed roughly the same track as a May 1999 twister that killed 44 people, injured hundreds more and destroyed thousands of homes.

Tornadoes frequently touch down on Oklahoma's wide open plains, but Monday's twister struck a populated urban area and raised fears of a high casualty toll.

AFP