Multiple tornadoes one of them a mile wide killed five people and injured more than 70 Friday evening in the Oklahoma City area just miles from where a monster tornado left 24 dead last week.
Oklahoma Highway Patrol Trooper Betsy Randolph said a woman and a baby were killed when the SUV they were in overturned on Interstate 40 between the western suburbs of El Reno and Yukon. One person was killed in Yukon and two others died elsewhere NBC station KFOR of Oklahoma City reported citing the state medical examiner's office. KFOR reported that all the victims were in vehicles.
The tornadoes were part of a Midwestern storm system that spun off twisters as far away as North Dakota and Tennessee. The St. Louis airport was closed after it and other parts of Missouri where Gov. Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency were also hit.
Brooke Cayot a spokeswoman for Integris Health said 71 people were treated for injuries at the hospital system's facilities in the Oklahoma City area after the tornadoes struck.
Many of them were hurt in accidents along Interstates 35 and 40 west of the city where at least three semi trailer rigs were overturned after the biggest tornado touched down near El Reno authorities said.
Flash floods hit across the Oklahoma City area Lieutenant Jay Barnett of Oklahoma City Police Department said. Barnett said a damage assessment team was out in the city.
Authorities also said some of the worst damage was from flooding around El Reno and Yukon.
One tornado turned south from Oklahoma City and then toward the suburb of Moore which was hit by a devastating twister on May 20 that killed 24 people and injured hundreds of others.
About 64 000 customers were without power in the metro area 12 000 of them in Moore electric utilities reported.
Interstates 35 and 40 were closed. We've got a terrible situation going on Trooper Randolph told NBC station KFOR of Oklahoma City.
An SUV used by Weather Channel meteorologist Mike Bettes and a crew of storm trackers was thrown 200 yards by the tornado tumbled about eight times and came to rest in a field near El Reno Bettes said. Some members of the crew suffered minor injuries and the vehicle was destroyed.
That was the scariest moment of my life Bettes said. I saw my life flash before my eyes.
Gov. Mary Fallin declared a state of emergency.
This has been a very large storm that hit a lot of communities she told KFOR. She said she had heard from at least 30 fellow governors offering assistance.
At Will Rogers World Airport in Oklahoma City where winds hit 71 mph all flights were canceled and about 1 000 travelers were herded underground where they were told to put their hands on their heads.
Tornado warnings meaning a funnel cloud that could become a tornado had been spotted in the area were in effect much of the day for numerous counties in Oklahoma Missouri Illinois and Wisconsin.
Forecasters sounded the alarm that much of the Midwest already pummeled by a week of tornadoes and flooded with drenching rains was facing another round of violent weather overnight and into the weekend.
Observers at Tinker Air Force Base reported a tornado on the ground near the base southwest of Oklahoma City. In Norman home to the University of Oklahoma a tornado touched down near Norman North High School and Norman Regional Hospital.
Buildings at Lambert St. Louis International Airport were damaged by tornadoes with debris strewn across the runway. The airport was closed because of the damage but re opened just before midnight the airport said in a statement.
Another tornado touched down Friday night 7 miles northeast of Moscow Mills Mo. about 50 miles northwest of St. Louis. In St. Charles County 24 houses were severely damaged or destroyed said Mike O'Connell communications director for the Missouri Department of Public Safety.
The National Weather Service evacuated its St. Louis office as tornado warnings were issued for north and northeastern St. Louis and surrounding counties.
Severe thunderstorm warnings meanwhile stretched from Minnesota and Michigan south to Arkansas. Forecasters said storms overnight could bring several more intense tornadoes hail up to 4 inches in diameter and wind gusts approaching 80 mph.
Janet Shamlian and Aaron Marmelstein of NBC News and Mike Bettes of The Weather Channel contributed to this report. Follow M. Alex Johnson on Twitter and Facebook.
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