The death toll from the tornado that tore through Joplin, Missouri on Sunday has risen to 124 with 750 injured, according to Joplin city authorities. Unfortunately it has turned out to be the deadliest twister in the U.S. since 1950. Sadly, this has also been the deadliest tornado season since 1953.
Around 1500 people have been reported missing in Joplin since the storm hit, a fire department official reported on Tuesday. About 49,000 people live in the city. The massive twister packed winds of 190 to 198 miles per hour.
More storms were experienced in the central U.S. on Tuesday night, killing 9 people in Oklahoma, Kansas and Arkansas. 5 people died near Oklahoma City and at least 60 were injured. Reportedly, a weather station in the area recorded 151 mph winds. The same storm also hit the already devastated Joplin.
The Joplin tornado was apparently a rare multivortex tornado, which means that it had two or more smaller, intense centers of rotation orbiting the main tornado funnel. It has also been classified as an EF-5 storm, the most powerful twister there is.
On Tuesday, the U.S. House Appropriations Committee approved $1 billion in emergency disaster funding to help the region surrounding Joplin recover from the devastating few days it has had.
The above image is a map showing the damage path of the Joplin tornado. The data was collected by helicopter surveys and distributed by Jasper County, Missouri.
Below is video shot by storm chasers, capturing the massive Joplin twister as it hit the city. Our thoughts go out to all those impacted by these horrifying weather events.
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