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12.02.2009 United States

Deadly U.S. Tornadoes Leave 8 Dead

By Daily Guide
Deadly U.S. Tornadoes Leave 8 Dead
12.02.2009 LISTEN

A large home stands in ruins The severe storms that uprooted trees, demolished homes and killed at least eight people in central Oklahoma on Tuesday are expected to weaken Wednesday, authorities said.

A tornado watch that was in effect early Wednesday for central Oklahoma was lifted, the National Weather Service said.

That was good news for people in the city of Lone Grove, who were dealing with extensive damage from the deadly storms that hit the area.

Lone Grove, near the Texas line about 90 miles south of the capital, Oklahoma City, had all of the fatalities and most of the approximately 50 injuries caused by the storms, according to the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management.

Also hit hard by the storms were the towns of Pawnee and Edmond, both north of the capital.

Dramatic television footage of one storm showed large funnel clouds that darkened the sky as the storm approached. It mangled homes, snapped trees and crushed cars with debris as it touched down. "The wind started blowing really hard and then died down," a Lone Grove man told CNN affiliate KOCO-TV. Then, "all heck broke loose. I mean, it just broke loose. The whole house shook."

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