Mother, Baby Among the Dead as Tornadoes Hit Oklahoma
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NOAA National Weather Service(OKLAHOMA CITY) — Less than two weeks after a tornado killed dozens of people in Moore, Okla., more twisters and violent weather swept through the area, leaving at least five people dead, flipping trucks on interstate highways during rush hour and miring cars in deep floods.
The National Weather Service initially estimated that five tornadoes touched down in the Oklahoma City area, though the number was likely to change as survey teams visited the area Saturday.
The weather was blamed for at least five deaths, according to the Oklahoma Medical Examiner’s Office. Among them were a mother and her baby near Interstate 40, Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Betsy Randolph told ABC News.
“We know that the storm picked them up and swept them away,” Randolph said. “When the troopers found them, they were both deceased.
The National Weather Service earlier had issued a tornado emergency for the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, including Moore, which is south of Oklahoma City, amid the massive storm.
Gov. Mary Fallin told ABC News that there were power outages, flooding and flipped trucks on interstates amid apparent tornadoes.
ABC News’ Ginger Zee reported seeing “multiple tornadoes with multiple vortices.”
ABC News affiliate KOCO in Oklahoma City reported that an apparent tornado had touched down near El Reno, Okla., and moved east toward Oklahoma City.
The latest storms hit less than two weeks after a massive E-5 tornado jolted Moore, Okla., on May 20, killing 24 people, smashing hospitals and schools, and flattening neighborhoods.
Moore City Manager Steve Eddy, driving around Moore after the latest storm, told ABC News Friday evening he saw minor flooding and power outages, but he did not immediately see evidence of tornado activity.
Oklahoma City Police Emergency Management said it was in the early stages of assessing damage. Emergency responders were helping motorists stranded by widespread flooding, but the agency said there was no confirmed touchdown of a tornado in the city.
Police in Norman, Okla., said there had been no tornadoes in that city.
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