nds76
03-12-2006, 9:50pm
ST. MARY, Mo. — Tornadoes in southern Missouri and southern Illinois killed two people whose pickup truck was blown into a propane tank as the twisters flattened homes along a 20-mile path, officials said Sunday. Several others were injured.
The worst damage was along a rural stretch Highway 61 in Perry County, about 80 miles south of St. Louis, where the victims had been driving late Saturday, emergency management director Jack Lakenan said. The force of the wind wedged the truck beneath the propane tank, he said.
The tornado also split a brick ranch home in half, tossed mobile homes, caved in garages and snapped dozens of trees. Several people were hurt; two were taken to a hospital in St. Louis.
"Best we can figure, five or six homes were destroyed and another five or six were badly damaged," Lakenan said.
The highway patrol confirmed the tornado had winds between 113 mph and 206 mph. Heavy rain also prompted flash flood warnings in the region, and softball-sized hail damaged homes and downed power lines.
The tornado touched down in northern Perry County before passing through Jefferson County and crossing the Mississippi River to the small town Fults, Ill., damaging several homes and businesses and injuring one person, said meteorologist Ron Przybylinski.
In Jefferson County, just south of St. Louis, high winds ripped through a new subdivision, destroying seven homes. Five people were hurt, but the extent of their injuries was unclear, the National Weather Service said.
One person in Bremen, Ill., was also hospitalized when glass hit the person's face.
High winds and softball-sized hail damaged homes and downed power lines in south- central Missouri's Phelps County. And in the tourist town of Branson, the winds tore the roof off a McDonald's restaurant.
The heaviest rainfall - 3 to 4 inches - was reported about 100 miles east of St. Louis in Illinois, Jon Carney of the National Weather Service said.
He said more severe weather is possible in the region through Sunday night.
http://www.kmov.com/topstories/stories/031206cckknatTornado.19d99ae9.html
The worst damage was along a rural stretch Highway 61 in Perry County, about 80 miles south of St. Louis, where the victims had been driving late Saturday, emergency management director Jack Lakenan said. The force of the wind wedged the truck beneath the propane tank, he said.
The tornado also split a brick ranch home in half, tossed mobile homes, caved in garages and snapped dozens of trees. Several people were hurt; two were taken to a hospital in St. Louis.
"Best we can figure, five or six homes were destroyed and another five or six were badly damaged," Lakenan said.
The highway patrol confirmed the tornado had winds between 113 mph and 206 mph. Heavy rain also prompted flash flood warnings in the region, and softball-sized hail damaged homes and downed power lines.
The tornado touched down in northern Perry County before passing through Jefferson County and crossing the Mississippi River to the small town Fults, Ill., damaging several homes and businesses and injuring one person, said meteorologist Ron Przybylinski.
In Jefferson County, just south of St. Louis, high winds ripped through a new subdivision, destroying seven homes. Five people were hurt, but the extent of their injuries was unclear, the National Weather Service said.
One person in Bremen, Ill., was also hospitalized when glass hit the person's face.
High winds and softball-sized hail damaged homes and downed power lines in south- central Missouri's Phelps County. And in the tourist town of Branson, the winds tore the roof off a McDonald's restaurant.
The heaviest rainfall - 3 to 4 inches - was reported about 100 miles east of St. Louis in Illinois, Jon Carney of the National Weather Service said.
He said more severe weather is possible in the region through Sunday night.
http://www.kmov.com/topstories/stories/031206cckknatTornado.19d99ae9.html