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Tornadoes kill 4 in Oklahoma, leaving trail of destruction and thousands without power

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Tornadoes kill 4 in Oklahoma, leaving trail of destruction and thousands without power
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News

Tornadoes kill 4 in Oklahoma, leaving trail of destruction and thousands without power

2024-04-29 09:46 Last Updated At:09:50

SULPHUR, Okla. (AP) — Tornadoes killed four people in Oklahoma, including an infant, and left thousands without power Sunday after a destructive outbreak of severe weather flattened buildings in the heart of one rural town and injured at least 100 people across the state.

More than 20,000 people were still without electricity hours after tornadoes began late Saturday night. The destruction was extensive in Sulphur, a town of about 5,000 people, where a tornado crumpled many downtown buildings, tossed cars and buses and sheared the roofs off houses across a 15-block radius.

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A car lies on its side after being knocked over during a tornado that tore through downtown Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

SULPHUR, Okla. (AP) — Tornadoes killed four people in Oklahoma, including an infant, and left thousands without power Sunday after a destructive outbreak of severe weather flattened buildings in the heart of one rural town and injured at least 100 people across the state.

A school bus lies on its side after being knocked over during a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A school bus lies on its side after being knocked over during a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A row of buildings is left damaged by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A row of buildings is left damaged by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

People remove items from a building damaged by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

People remove items from a building damaged by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A row of buildings is left damaged by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A row of buildings is left damaged by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A car lies knocked over on its side after a tornado tore through Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A car lies knocked over on its side after a tornado tore through Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A man walks past tornado damage in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024, after severe storms hit the area the night before. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

A man walks past tornado damage in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024, after severe storms hit the area the night before. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

Tornado damage in Sulphur, Okla., is pictured on Sunday, April 28, 2024, after severe storms hit the area the night before. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

Tornado damage in Sulphur, Okla., is pictured on Sunday, April 28, 2024, after severe storms hit the area the night before. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

People look at tornado damage in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024, after severe storms hit the area the night before. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

People look at tornado damage in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024, after severe storms hit the area the night before. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

A man is surrounded by tornado damage after severe storms moved through the night before in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

A man is surrounded by tornado damage after severe storms moved through the night before in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

Charlie Schwake walks past his property in Sulphur after a tornado hit the area the night before in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

Charlie Schwake walks past his property in Sulphur after a tornado hit the area the night before in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows a crew working on clearing debris caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows a crew working on clearing debris caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

Sean Thomas Sledd salvages items from his room after it was hit by a tornado the night before in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. Sledd sought shelter at Oklahoma School for the deaf. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

Sean Thomas Sledd salvages items from his room after it was hit by a tornado the night before in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. Sledd sought shelter at Oklahoma School for the deaf. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows buildings destroyed by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows buildings destroyed by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

A partially torn off roof is seen on a damaged home in Omaha, Neb., on Saturday, April 27, 2024. Dozens of reported tornadoes wreaked havoc Friday in the Midwest. (Chris Machian/Omaha World-Herald via AP)

A partially torn off roof is seen on a damaged home in Omaha, Neb., on Saturday, April 27, 2024. Dozens of reported tornadoes wreaked havoc Friday in the Midwest. (Chris Machian/Omaha World-Herald via AP)

“You just can't believe the destruction,” Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said during a visit to the hard-hit town. “It seems like every business downtown has been destroyed.”

Stitt said about 30 people were injured in Sulphur, including some who were in a bar as the tornado struck. Hospitals across the state reported about 100 injuries, including people apparently cut or struck by debris, according to the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management. An infant was among those killed, Hughes County Emergency Management Director Mike Dockrey told Oklahoma television station KOCO.

White House officials said President Joe Biden spoke to Stitt on Sunday and offered the full support of the federal government.

The deadly weather in Oklahoma added to the dozens of reported tornadoes that have wreaked havoc in the nation's midsection since Friday. Another death was reported Sunday in Iowa, where officials in Pottawattamie County said a man critically injured during a tornado Friday had died.

In Oklahoma, authorities said the tornado in Sulphur began in a city park before barreling through the downtown, flipping cars and ripping the roofs and walls off of brick buildings. Windows and doors were blown out of structures that remained standing.

“How do you rebuild it? This is complete devastation,” said Kelly Trussell, a lifelong Sulphur resident as she surveyed the damage. “It is crazy, you want to help but where do you start?”

Carolyn Goodman traveled to Sulphur from the nearby town of Ada in search of her former sister-in-law, who Goodman said was at a local bar just before the tornado hit the area. Stitt said one of the victims was found inside a bar but authorities had not yet identified those killed.

“The bar was destroyed,” Goodman said. “I know they probably won’t find her alive ... but I hope she is still alive.”

Farther north, a tornado near the town of Holdenville killed two people and damaged or destroyed more than a dozen homes, according to the Hughes County Emergency Medical Service. Another person was killed along Interstate 35 near the southern Oklahoma city of Marietta, state officials said.

Heavy rains that swept into Oklahoma with the tornadoes also caused dangerous flooding and water rescues. Outside Sulphur, rising lake levels shut down the Chickasaw National Recreation Area, where the storms wiped out a pedestrian bridge.

Stitt issued an executive order Sunday declaring a state of emergency in 12 counties due to the fallout from the severe weather.

At the Sulphur High School gym, where families took cover from the storm, Jackalyn Wright said she and her family heard what sounded like a helicopter as the tornado touched down over them.

Chad Smith, 43, said people ran into the gym as the wind picked up. The rain started coming faster and the doors slammed shut. “Just give me a beer and a lawn chair and I will sit outside and watch it,” Smith said. Instead, he took cover.

Residents in other states were also digging out from storm damage. A tornado in suburban Omaha, Nebraska, demolished homes and businesses Saturday as it moved for miles through farmland and into subdivisions, then slammed an Iowa town.

The tornado damage began Friday afternoon near Lincoln, Nebraska. An industrial building in Lancaster County was hit, causing it to collapse with 70 people inside. Several were trapped, but everyone was evacuated, and the three injuries were not life-threatening, authorities said.

One or possibly two tornadoes then spent around an hour creeping toward Omaha, leaving behind damage consistent with an EF3 twister, with winds of 135 to 165 mph (217 to 265 kph), said Chris Franks, a meteorologist in the National Weather Service’s Omaha office.

Nebraska Gov. Jim Pillen and Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds spent Saturday touring the damage and arranging for assistance for the damaged communities. Formal damage assessments are still underway, but the states plan to seek federal help.

Associated Press journalists Acacia Coronado in Austin, Texas, and Sophia Tareen in Chicago contributed to this report.

A car lies on its side after being knocked over during a tornado that tore through downtown Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A car lies on its side after being knocked over during a tornado that tore through downtown Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A school bus lies on its side after being knocked over during a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A school bus lies on its side after being knocked over during a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A row of buildings is left damaged by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A row of buildings is left damaged by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

People remove items from a building damaged by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

People remove items from a building damaged by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A row of buildings is left damaged by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A row of buildings is left damaged by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A car lies knocked over on its side after a tornado tore through Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A car lies knocked over on its side after a tornado tore through Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (AP Photo/Ken Miller)

A man walks past tornado damage in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024, after severe storms hit the area the night before. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

A man walks past tornado damage in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024, after severe storms hit the area the night before. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

Tornado damage in Sulphur, Okla., is pictured on Sunday, April 28, 2024, after severe storms hit the area the night before. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

Tornado damage in Sulphur, Okla., is pictured on Sunday, April 28, 2024, after severe storms hit the area the night before. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

People look at tornado damage in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024, after severe storms hit the area the night before. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

People look at tornado damage in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024, after severe storms hit the area the night before. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

A man is surrounded by tornado damage after severe storms moved through the night before in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

A man is surrounded by tornado damage after severe storms moved through the night before in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

Charlie Schwake walks past his property in Sulphur after a tornado hit the area the night before in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

Charlie Schwake walks past his property in Sulphur after a tornado hit the area the night before in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows a crew working on clearing debris caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows a crew working on clearing debris caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

Sean Thomas Sledd salvages items from his room after it was hit by a tornado the night before in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. Sledd sought shelter at Oklahoma School for the deaf. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

Sean Thomas Sledd salvages items from his room after it was hit by a tornado the night before in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. Sledd sought shelter at Oklahoma School for the deaf. (Bryan Terry/The Oklahoman via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows buildings destroyed by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows buildings destroyed by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

This image taken from video provided by KOCO shows damage caused by a tornado in Sulphur, Okla., Sunday, April 28, 2024. (KOCO via AP)

A partially torn off roof is seen on a damaged home in Omaha, Neb., on Saturday, April 27, 2024. Dozens of reported tornadoes wreaked havoc Friday in the Midwest. (Chris Machian/Omaha World-Herald via AP)

A partially torn off roof is seen on a damaged home in Omaha, Neb., on Saturday, April 27, 2024. Dozens of reported tornadoes wreaked havoc Friday in the Midwest. (Chris Machian/Omaha World-Herald via AP)

Secrets and shame — every family has its share. When it came time to write her most autobiographical novel, Claire Messud relied on a 1,500-page family history compiled by her paternal grandfather. The result, “This Strange Eventful History,” sprawls over a third as many pages — 423, to be exact — to tell the story of three generations of a French Algerian family displaced from their colonial homeland, who never quite found another place where they felt so completely at home.

The story is told from the point of view of the fiercely French, devout Catholic, patriarch Gaston; his rootless, cosmopolitan son, Francois; and his fearful, deluded, psychologically damaged daughter, Denise. Rounding out the chorus are Barbara, the beautiful, Protestant, Canadian-born wife of Francois, torn between roles as wife, mother and daughter as she struggles to earn a law degree at the peak of 1970s-era “women’s lib” while raising their two daughters and whipping up Julia Child recipes for dinner parties; and finally, Gaston’s granddaughter Chloe, a stand-in for the author, inheritor of this “strange, eventful history” and ultimately, spiller of family secrets and perhaps, exorciser of shame.

Behind the “endless ritual” of their busy lives — from birth to death, grade school to retirement — Messud is keenly aware that a vaster story is unfolding, one that spans epochs and continents, perceived only in glimmers by various members of the clan. For instance, when Francois calls Barbara to tell her about a terrible accident at the site of a mining operation in Australia, where they have been posted for his job, she thinks, “What had been there? Not nothing. It was an Aboriginal tribal homeland: before it had been transformed into a dystopian hellscape, it had been untouched for thousands of years, the people there living as lightly and resourcefully upon the land as the animals and birds.”

For fans of Messud, whose earlier novels include the bestselling 2006 novel “The Emperor’s Children” as well as “The Woman Upstairs,” this latest work will be ambrosial, brimming with long passages that attempt to capture the evanescent sensations of life — touch, taste, sounds, smells, the ever-shifting register of light. Others may get lost in dense, descriptive passages that roll on and on, owing a debt to the English modernist writer Virginia Woolf, one of Messud’s literary heroes. Yet all in all, the book is a masterful achievement, a somber, joyous meditation on the consolations and disappointments of empire, nation, faith and family.

AP book reviews: https://apnews.com/hub/book-reviews

This cover image released bu Norton shows "This Strange Eventful History" by Claire Messud. (Norton via AP)

This cover image released bu Norton shows "This Strange Eventful History" by Claire Messud. (Norton via AP)

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