Midwest Storms

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Crews cleared splintered plywood and smashed appliances from small-town neighborhoods Thursday, a day after tornadoes killed 13 people in the Midwest and South. At least 16 tornados were reported from Nebraska and Kansas across southern Missouri to Illinois and Kentucky, according to the Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla., an arm of the National Weather Service.

St. Joseph's Catholic Church is left in ruins after a severe storm hit in the early morning hours on Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012, in in Ridgway, Ill. Several deaths have been reported in Harrisburg and left the city's medical center scrambling to treat an influx of injured, the hospital's top administrator said. (AP Photo/The Southern Illinoisan, Paul Newton)
Sherry Cousins and her brother Bruce Wallace of Hollister, Mo., sit in the wreckage of their secondhand store in Branson, Mo, Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012. A powerful storm system that produced multiple reports of tornadoes lashed the Midwest early Wednesday, roughing up the country music resort city of Branson. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Gene Byrd pauses for a moment while he and his son Devyn Byrd, 14, look over some of the damage sustained to a friends house after a severe storm hit in the early morning hours on Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012, in Harrisrbug, Ill. A severe pre-dawn storm pounded portions of southern Illinois on Wednesday. Several deaths have been reported in Harrisburg and left the city's medical center scrambling to treat an influx of injured, the hospital's top administrator said. (AP Photo/The Southern Illinoisan,Paul Newton )
Debris from a storm-damaged motel is blown across the parking lot Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012, in Branson, Mo. A powerful storm system that produced multiple reports of tornadoes lashed the Midwest early Wednesday, roughing up the entertainment resort town of Branson and laying waste to small towns in Illinois and Kansas. At least nine people were killed. (AP Photo/The News-Leader, Dean Curtis) NO SALES

Residents gather the morning after severe storms destroyed several homes and businesses in Harveyville, Kan., Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)
Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon tours storm damage in a motorcade along Highway 76 in Branson, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012. An apparent tornado hopscotched through the city's main tourist district overnight, causing damage for miles. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
A prosthetic leg found among the debris caused by a tornado that ripped through Harrisburg, Ill. leans against a damaged home Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012. The tornado that blasted Harrisburg, killing six, was an EF4, the second-highest rating given to twisters based on damage. Scientists said it was 200 yards wide with winds up to 170 mph. (AP Photo/Robert Ray)
From left, Alli Ferrell, 10, and cousin Christian Murray, 12, sit on the front porch, as Lindsey Murray, 15, of Harrisburg, Ill., paints "for sale fixer upper" on the side of the home of their grandmother, Sharon Murray, 61, after a tornado destroyed the house in Harrisburg, Ill., Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012. A tornado struck the small town in southern Illinois killing 6. Murray was not at home at the time of the storm. A prosthetic leg was found among the wreckage. (AP Photo/Stephen Lance Dennee)
A picture frame and personal belongings are remains left behind in Harrisburg, Ill. on Thursday, March 1, 2012. A pre-dawn twister flattened entire blocks of homes Wednesday as violent storms ravaged the Midwest and South. (AP Photo/Robert Ray)
A stuffed toy lies in a ditch the morning after severe storms destroyed several homes and businesses in Harveyville, Kan., Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012. A powerful storm system lashed the Midwest early Wednesday, roughing up the country music resort city of Branson and laying waste to the small town in Kansas.(AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)
Judy Hudnall, right, buries her head in her brother, Gene Pickerill's arms after she arrived at the scene on Nugent Drive in Henderson, Ky Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012. Waves of strong storms ripped roofs off homes, apartment buildings and a bank and destroyed several buildings in north-central Kentucky. (AP Photo/The Gleaner, Darrin Phegley)
After a tornado on Wednesday, St. Joseph's Catholic Church is left in ruins, Thursday, March 1, 2012, in Ridgway, Ill. A pre-dawn tornado killed six people in southern Illinois Wednesday. (AP Photo/Seth Perlman)
Windows are blown out of a Hilton hotel in downtown Branson, Mo., Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012. A powerful storm system lashed the Midwest early Wednesday, roughing up the country music resort city of Branson and laying waste to a small town in Kansas. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Milton Ackley, KDoT (Kansas Department of Transportation) equipment operator senior, works to repair a city limits sign Wednesday morning, Feb. 29, 2012, that was damaged during Tuesday night's severe storm, near the intersection of Centennial Drive and Highway 160 in Pittsburg, Kan. (AP Photo/The Joplin Globe, T. Rob Brown)
People try to salvage what they can after a tornado destroyed homes in their neighborhood Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012, in Harrisburg, Ill. The tornado that blasted Harrisburg, killing six, was an EF4, the second-highest rating given to twisters based on damage. Scientists said it was 200 yards wide with winds up to 170 mph. (AP Photo/Seth Perlman)
This aerial photo shows a path of damage stretching west from the backside of a Wal-Mart Supercenter to the east in Harrisburg, Ill., after a severe storm hit Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012. Several deaths have been reported in Harrisburg and left the city's medical center scrambling to treat an influx of injured, the hospital's top administrator said. (AP Photo/The Southern, Steve Jahnke)
Jerry Mallard stand outside of his business after a tornado tore through Branson, Mo., early Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012. "One of my signs is four blocks down the road," Mallard said. (AP Photo/TODD FEEBACK/Kansas City Star)
Emergency crews comb through some of the damage after a severe storm hit in the early morning hours on Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012, in Harrisrbug, Ill. A severe pre-dawn storm pounded portions of southern Illinois on Wednesday. Several deaths have been reported in Harrisburg and left the city's medical center scrambling to treat an influx of injured, the hospital's top administrator said. (AP Photo/The Southern Illinoisan,Paul Newton )
Broken branches and household debris are scattered across a lawn early Wednesday morning, Feb. 29, 2012 in Harveyville, Kan., after an apparent tornado passed through the town Tuesday night. Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback declared a state of emergency late Tuesday after a powerful storm system pounded the state's midsection. (AP Photo/Emporia Gazette, Matthew Fowler)
Judy Hudnall sift through the debris left from Wednesday morning's storm in Henderson Ky. Wednesday, Feb. 29, 2012. Waves of strong storms ripped roofs off homes, apartment buildings and a bank and destroyed several buildings in north-central Kentucky. (AP Photo/The Gleaner, Darrin Phegley)