all right. welcome back, everyone. to cnn's live coverage of the aftermath of the oklahoma tornado. live pictures of the recovery effort, the rescue effort right now. looking at these workers picking through the rubble there. you can see some pickaxes i think. people lifting up pieces of the debris by hand. doing this all night. into the morning right now, and a lot going on here. also a news conference with the president. the president will speak at 10:00 eastern time today, a news conference at noon. stay with cnn, all day for all the twists and turns of this developing story, our live coverage of the aftermath of the oklahoma tornado continues with chris cuomo right now.

>> thank you, john. the picture tells the story this is basically ground zero of where this tornado hit yesterday afternoon. at 3:00 p.m. just as kids were ready to get out of school. that's very important, because they had to be brought back in parents rushed out into the tornado. caused a lot of frustration and havoc this is the aftermath. get dave. follow me overhere this piece of steel looks wispy. this is 220 pounds. me pushing on it. a thick piece of metal. i couldn't move it over to get it closer in the shot for you guys. twisted in the torn like nothing. cars tossed around like toys. where there were homes, they are now what appears to be bales of hay. in some parts, mile to mile and a half wide and 20 miles long. as you come into the debris zone

this is how it works, first, looks like there was a messy rainstorm, then you see trees down and splatter on the houses, like sprayed with something, then you start to see all of your light poles and everything are gone, and you get to here and this is what it is. behind us the medical center, okay? a safe zone for people in the tornado this is where they go, obviously if they are hurt, but just for safety. strong construction, metal, masonry, brick. this is supposed to be good. this is what it is now. the good news and there is a the lot offed good news coming out of situation, bad as well. we'll tell you all of it all of the staff accounted for. patient moved. 150 people who got help got it at surrounding hospitals. couldn't even get in here. entrance blocked by all of the cars. often we measure the situations in casualties. very low numbers right now. estimates, going to go up. going to get worse. why? this is still going on.

this search and rescue is very active. they haven't made it through 50 percent of the area they have to look at now. one of the unique things that happens in places like moore, oklahoma, community come together. shelters weren't that full last night. people take in their own, take in, everybody becomes family. a lot of walking wounded. that number of 150 injured is low. a lot of people haven't gone to the hospital. they are searching, searching for what's left of homes, belongings, and most importantly their loved ones, gets us to the two schools hit. briarwood. we'll show you scenes of the dramatic reunion. people getting back together there, finding their kids, literally, they couldn't get cell calls, didn't know what was going on. no cell calls, no word. all the fears of so many families satisfied by getting their kids back. many did not get that. plaza tower, another school, we'll show you pictures, decimated by the tornado. of the 51 dead, and, again, that

number will change, 20 already are kids. many died in the basement of that school. it became flooded. horrible to hear, but imagine for the families to learn that. the search and rescue there, still very active. going hand by hand. can't get earth moved. you can't get earth moving machines in here, too difficult. there are active power lines down, active gast lines open. all very difficult. that is the scene in oklahoma. the weather has moved on, you will see clear skies here, front moving toward texas. get to meteorologists that will tell us about the threat that remains for places. more tornadoes that could come down. from moore, oklahoma, right now, all about the aftermath and finding out who is still alive. community are very active right now doing it. saw it as we drove through. looking for people. asking the media to move so you don't hear the generator sounds so they can keep searching. pam brown with me, all morning, seen it first hand.

how has it changed throughout the course of the morning in terms of activity? >> people are just in a days. more people reemerging from their homes, wherever they've been, and people are just -- have a blank stare on their face. one of the big questions a lot of people had, where did everyone go when the tornado came through? didn't have a lot of time to evacuate. knew severe weather was coming, but didn't know an explosive tornado came through. a lot of homes don't have basements, a lot of schools don't have underground shelters, including plaza towers. seven people killed. kids had to run into the hallway, crouch down, put their hands over their heads as the building crumbled on top of them. parent, ran to that school, frantically searching for their child. this morning, reyou coulders there, sifting through the rubble, many parents anxiously await answers as to where their

child is. illuminated by flood lights, rescue teams sifted through mountains of debris where plaza towers elementary school once stood in some places, debris ten feet high. underneath, the worst nightmare. the bodies of schoolchildren who tried to seek shelter from a ferocious tornado. many more still missing. the race to rescue dozens of students and teachers began right after the massive two-mile wide tornado ripped through two elementary schools directly in its path. at hardest hit, plaza towers elementary, a third grade class huddle in the hallway of the school. worried parents sent to a statementing area at a nearby church searched for answers. at first, several schirn pulled from the leveled school alive, but with each passing hour, the operation tragically went from rescue to recovery mission. the heart wrenching reality of the storm's fury hard to

comprehend. >> one of the things we want to remind people of, words like rescue, recovery, they are kind of meaningless in situations like this. ongoing, looking for people. that's our understanding. >> that's right. at this point there, is still hope there will be survivors at the elementary school where there are still children unaccounted for. i want to talk about the teachers here. the teachers are being hailed as heroes. he would heard stories of teachers jumping on kids, pulling walls off children. pictures of teachers hugging children after the tornado went through. >> take a look at the image. i assumed these people were parent. look at the love. look at the affection. these are teachers that you are looking at here. the bloodied face of the young woman. the satisfaction on her face, she has a kid in her hand. >> how many times did they

practice that drill. how many times did they take the kids in the hallway, practice the tornado drill, they really had to put that to use, and kids followed teacher's orders. they were the comforting figure for these kids during what must have been a terrifying situation and that picture we just saw really says it all. >> so far it captures the moment of the resilience of the neighborhood, community, and the teachers. they did what they needed to do. at the end of the day, you can't prepare for this. talk about basements and shelters, warning about 16 minutes, above average. usually get 13 minutes when it's an imminent, violent tornado. not a lot of time. especially if there aren't places to go to be honest, the violence of this, couldn't be protected this would doed bad things to anybody who was in its way. and that certainly is the case what we have here. a couple more numbers. search and rescue still ongoing,

putting out a number of over 100 saved so far. remember, community act for themselves, save one another. they are picking through. you are seeing it as you walk around. animal rescue all over the ground also. lots of stray dogs you will see as you come through. what matters most are the people. and the kids, and those schools getting hit right when it was closing was so terrifying. many saying this morning it could have been worse, what they are worried about now is the numbers when they come out, may make this the worst in the state's history. >> numbers continue to creep up this morning. catastrophic, only way to describe it. >> the aftereffects really are paralyzing when you watch them. we have jeff on the phone, if you can hear me, taking dramatic video that showed this as it unfolded. tell me, what were you seeing? what was it like to watch it moment by moment? >> well, i was caught offguard, because i had thought the tornado just passed me. so much debris and everything, i

thought the tornado just moved just ahead of me and so i stopped to -- i was directly between my house and my son's school. i had a daughter at my house and a son at school. i called my wife when i thought it passed me. it missed our house, our daughter will be okay. she told me immediately that there is no way the tornado passed me, and i told her, yes, i just saw it. and she said, jeff, i'm looking at it on tv and right about then, the tornado came in front of me, and i told her, okay, i got to go, bye. hung up and started taking video. and i think that's what are you seeing on tv now. >> reporter: let me ask you something. when you were looking at the tornado, were you able to tell you were in the debris field. able to see things on the outside spinning around? >> nothing i could identify. mainly appeared to be trash. nothing giant like a car or

anything. i had my hand sticking out the window videoing it and trying to stay sooipd the car, because some of the trash and debris coming inside the car and i think you see the car window there, and finally i had to roll the window up. i did not see anything major. >> let me ask you about what matters most. people, were people -- did you see anybody exposed to it as far as you could tell. people able to stay inside. find places to be? >> just literally as i was talking to my wife, i don't know if you could tell on the video, on a street facing a house, and as a called her, i saw a man carrying a baby, run from the house right there on the left of that video. run down the street and get into another house and that's when i was talking to my wife and that's when the tornado came. but those houses did not get hit. just a block north of there. so i am sure he was safe. >> and you got a little bit of

sense of that as the tornado passes over. certain places myriraculously spared and others torn away. >> south 13th street or 12th street, and the tornado crossed in, about from south fifth street to about south tenth street, 11th street, i was one or two blocks away from where houses were hit head on. you can see, i started driving, trying to get to my son's school. directly into there. and so now i was trying to get to him, and they kept all the kids in school, and it's -- the school is right off of fourth street. a major street in moore. tried to get to fourth street going north, and also power lines, large powerline poles were down, blocking as far as i could see. i had to go a half mile north and half mile east in back neighborhoods and just very lucky, happened to drive

straight into the school. i had to abandon my truck there because of the power lines, so i -- i jumped -- i got out of truck and started jumping the power lines and made it to the school, the main structure, some of the windows busted out, it was standing, went to the back side and saw that the gym had blown down and probably one of the first parents there and a couple of teachers out. and we walked over to the gym to look to see if anybody was in there. i didn't know if my son was in the gym or main body of the school. and i asked the teachers, they said the teachers were in the main body and directing nobody to go inside. apparently they heard voices in the gym, started going back to the gym to try to sift through the rubble, see if we could help anybody that might be trapped in there, and you could hear some girls crying. but i guess they realized that there was a back door to the structure, so there was an escape route. that part of the gym hadn't completely collapsed and 13,

14-year-old girls came out, holding hands, bawling their eyes out. and we walked them into the school, gathered everybody there. >> what a story. what a story. what a story. thank god you were there and people listening, trying to help. your son is okay? >> yes. it took -- the teacher does an awesome job. the teachers outside, the school staff, no panic, everything was calm and they knew what they were doing, and we then made everybody go in the library, the smell of gas terrible outside. i went to the school, no power, and you could just imagine, a couple hundred 13, 14-year-old kids one room after that sheer chaos as far as people talking, they had them all together, and it took me 15 minutes to find my son. they wouldn't let us leave. because they wanted to be able to talk to me, know where the kids went, and then you could

start smelling gas inside the building. evacuated us out of the building, and i took that chance, i know the teachers knew that i had my son, my son and i left. just kind of snuck out. we didn't want to get trapped. we were here for the may 3 every torna tornado and the sheer gridlock of people wanting to come and help, or to look, you could not move in the town, so we tried to get out. my daughter was home alone, and we jumped the power lines, wouldn't arcing, all appeared to be dead, we were very careful, got to the truck and able to make it home, which was half mile south of there. >> and your home is intact? >> yes, my home is fine. just a little bit south of it. where that video is is directly i would say -- my home is a half mile south of where that video is, and my son's school a half mile northeast. right between my daughter who was at home and my son at

school. >> jeff, such, terrible things you went through yesterday, and yet you my friend are one of the lucky ones, have you your family intact, a place to go tonight, we wish you the best, thank you for sharing the video and story. let us know if you need anything. we're down by the hospital. >> thank you. thank you. >> a lot of stories like that we'll hear this morning, people who found a way through it. people who were lucky and they are the lucky ones as horrible as it has been, many stories who come out won't have those types of endings, back after a short break from moore, oklahoma. ♪

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this is chris cuomo. what happened is evident from everything around. this is what the aftermath is. the moment of crisis we're learning about more every passing moment here. about what people dealt with on the street and most importantly, at the schools. i want to bring in terri watkins with emergency management. she's on the phone. can you hear us? >> yes, i can. >> all right. thank you very much for joining us. you knew what scene was at the school. that was the real big risk here. this hit about 3:00 p.m. local time, when kid were getting out of school. what it was like when you showed up? >> chris, i have to apologize to you, i was not down at the scene at that point in time. i know what the devastation is in this area, i apologize, i was

not at the scene when the first responders began to arrive. >> okay. what do you understand about what they found there? >> what you found is what i'm sorry to say most people across the country have seen. it is complete devastation down in that area. it is rubble everywhere. what search and rescue teams are doing is going through methodically brick by brick, board by board to find anyone who may be alive in the rubble. these are very good rescue effort. sad to say, they have done it in oklahoma before. they will do everything in their power to attempt not only at the school, but throughout the community of moore to see if there are survivors. the oklahoma highway patrol reported earlier, 101 people have been found alive. 101 people found alive. since the search and rescue

operation began. so that is the reason they keep going in there. very slowly and carefully. >> and as reason for hope going forward, a lot of area to be searched, isn't that correct, ter terri? >> yes. this is a massive tornado and a large area that has been struck. not only in the community of moore, but the surrounding community and the rural areas that the tornado went through. yes. a lot of area left to search. >> and what are you starting to understand on the ground in terms of what the needs are for people? getting colder here as the weather moves out. taking warm air with it 10, 15 degrees cooler than it was earlier this morning. what is the need on the ground and how is it being addressed? >> the need on the ground is being addressed through the shelters and through large feeding operations, the meals that the southern baptist

convention and methodist church doing at different locations, throughout the affected area, shelters set up and we understand they are still in use. remember, we had tornadoes the day before in the community of shawnee and bethel acres, so still shelters there being used. shelters are being used and bringing in additional functioning needs that people have for not only the search and rescue operation, but needs they will have for families and the survivors that are in these shelters. >> now, is it true, terry, these community people really take one another in, so even if you don't see the highest number at the shelter, that's because so many i vit in people who are affected like family? >> this is oklahoma. when a neighbor is hurt, you don't ask what they need, you invite them in and help them. that is what we do.

that is going to happen in all parts of the metro area. they will invite family in, friends of family, friends of friends to take care of. so sometimes when you hear the numbers of those sheltered is low, it's low because somebody reached out to them, to bring them into their home and care them in these difficult times. it's what we do. >> and you're doing it beautifully. examples of it all over the place why this place has been able to pull through before. in stories we know too well. let me ask you, in terms of scope and scale, trying to stay away from numbers, i know they are going to go up. where do you think this one is going to stack up in terms of how penetrating, how bad the damage is here? >> it's difficult to tell until they can get up in the helicopters, search the path, until the national weather service can get in there, tern the scale of this tornado,

comparisons, we're not going to make them, at this point in time with as many people homeless, as much damage as has been done, comparisons don't matter right now. what matters is the help. >> a strong point, terri. thank you so much. know this. if cnn can help get word out about specific needs and places where people can go to give, whatever it is that you develop, that there is a need for, please feel free to let us know. we're happy to get the word out. >> chris, cnn has been here before, have done that in times of great need in oklahoma. we appreciate the word you are getting out and the time are you spending in oklahoma to get the word out about the help that is occurring and what people are doing. and we thank you for that. >> all right. happy to do our job. thank you, terri. we know are you doing yours. we appreciate your time. here for you.

cnn.com/impact. go to our website, find out the different organizations in place to take in what will be needed. and the need is complete. i miss -- i mistook terri for a woman named betsy randolph who is with the highway patrol, she came up on the scene. i want to play you some sound of what it was like so you get a sense of what it was like to be in this tornado, present sense impression, that moment by moment phenomenon. take a listen. >> when we showed up yesterday afternoon, we first started hearing reports, troopers saying -- had our radios on, worked in oklahoma city. we heard them saying they were seeing debris on the interstate. when they said debris on the interstate because of the tornado, we knew two things. one, tornado touched down in the city of moore and there was going to be casualties. when they talk about debris, they are talking about insulation, shingles, wood, the same things that are you seeing on the roadway in the parking lot here was on the interstate.

and we knew that houses on either side of the interstate, we knew there would be a loss of life and mass devastation. we started this way. when we got here, what we saw was unbelievable. i had been here for may 3rd tornado. this was nothing. may 3 every nothing compared to this. i'm talking everywhere you looked debris field so high, so far, so wide. wounded people walking around the streets. you know, walking wounded. they were bloody, people that had stuff sticking out of them from things that were flying around in the air. cars cru s crumpled up like toy. buildings two and three stories high leveled. it was devastating. >> i'm sorry. as far as recovering people, we heard you recovered upward of 100 people overnight? >> we've had hundreds of law

enforcement people, fire, ems people who have been on the scene overnight. they flooded in from all parts of the state, from texas, different states, showed up out here, yesterday afternoon, last evening, and, in fact, we had so many folks here, first responders, we had to tell them to go home, get reis rest, come back at 7:00 in the morning, we don't have a place for you. over at the school, if you stop and think about it, we had a small area, a building, completely devastated. we can't put people on top of the debris, because we know little people are under the debris, so we're trying to meticulously pick up stuff and when we pick it up, we have to have a safe place to put it, knowing we won't cause further harm, as you can imagine, a painstaking process, didn't do that just there, but throughout the city. sectioned off areas, sent out task force, strike teams if you will, that went out to certain locations, spray painted the

area, marked the building to say we've checked it and there is no one there, we checked it, pulled out people alive. checked it, people are dead. and we did that strategically through the entire city of moore. a path of destruction two miles wide and i don't know how long that devastation was, but we know the path as it came across moore was two miles wide. hundreds, thousands of people affected. people went to work this morning, dropped their kids off to school, left their house and pets at the house, they have nothing. they have no house, they have no pets, they have no children in some cases, and our hearts are broken for them. we've been on the scene, trying to re-elect people. get people out of areas that are totally devastated, get them to shelters, working with the american red cross to get people in immediate shelters throughout the city and places set up. people are bringing their injured animals, we know there were children throughout the

city at different schools, we took all the kids were taken to first baptist church at 27th street, 935. been an amazing recovery effort. all night long and it will continue on today and our hope is that we're still going to find more people alive, either buried in the rubble. maybe possibly knocked unconscious. we had people out overnight, simply walking and listening. listening for cries of help. we know they are still out there and we're going to find them. >> that's incredible. so today the rescue effort will continue? >> absolutely. >> any kind of number as to how many people were recovered? >> i know overnight, 101. all of our teams combined, 101 people rescued overnight alive and well. we hope that number to increase during the day today. as teams condition. we'll have a new set of crew that come on at 7:00, get their briefing, assignments and go out. within a number of minute,

probably, and hours, we'll have those good numbers coming back in, we know there are people that are heartbroken because they've already gotten the word that some of their family members won't be coming home and we understand that, and our heart are heavy for them. i can't even imagine their devastation. i can't, as a mom, i can't. but we know that god is good and we know that there are people out there who are still alive, and we're going to find them. and we're going to reunite them with their families and that's why we're here and we'll stay her until we get it done. [ engine revving ] ♪ [ male announcer ] every car we build must make adrenaline pump and pulses quicken. ♪ to help you not just to stay alive... but feel alive. the c-class is no exception. it's a mercedes-benz, through and through.

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here we are in moore, oklahoma. i'm chris cuomo. joined by pam brown. trying to give people a sense of what it's like here. do me favor, not tied to the devices here. walk us into a bowling alley, or what was a bowling alley. tell us what we see. >> the picture really tells a story. how the structure is collapsed. it shows the -- how powerful,

how ferocious that tornado was. take a look, over here, we can see the beam over here that was actually holding this structure up. a steel beam this burgundy steel beam, once holding this up bowling alley over here and you can see, lying down this is a scene all over where this bowling alley was. we see metal scraps, side panel right here, wrapped around this pole, hugging the pole like it's straw. this over here, that's where bowling alley was. this is where people would come to enjoy themselves. this was in the direct path of the tornado yesterday, and you can see a bowling ball here. a child's bowling ball. these are scattered throughout the area here, and what is interesting, the carpet, the fact that you see this carpet here and kind of visualize what this once was. people would come, pru assucomee

they would buy their bowling shoes, and mountains and mountains of rubble, and next to the bowling alley, a hospital obliterated. this was supposed to be a safe zone for people. where people are in times like this, in times of devastation, people not only recovering, but come here for shelter, look behind me and it paint a picture of how powerful the tornado was. >> and cars with the xs, means they were searched. nobody in there. that's the process going on right now. and pam, imagine how difficult it would be to go out and find if anyone is okay. lots of pockets of open states, even though it looks like a pile to find them is painstaking. needs human hands and time. >> and heavy too talking about right here, the aluminum. i tonight know what you would call this.

this is part of the structure, hard to pick up. think about how difficult for a lot of the rescue workers that can't use machines, equipment to help them, because they are afraid if they do, it could harm survivors. >> can't get big earth moving equipment. a dog parking, a dog running through here. running through the bowling alley, if they are able to pick him up on the camera. >> we've seen a lot of this. >> who knows who he's looking for. trying to do their best. part of the search effort. the dog is excited. he's working. that's how they are trained. show excitement as they are going through, and hopefully he clears this scene and no terrible discoveries on his watch right now. but we know they are going to happen. that is the nature of this process, but also will be beautiful discoveries and for sure there is great, great need. people have lost their homes, they have lost loved ones and getting cold here, pam and i just put on our coats.

as the weather system moved out, cold air moved in. i want to bring in pastor greg rochelle, he is senior pastor at life church tv. can you hear me? >> i can, chris, thank you. >> thank you for joining us, sir. we know you put a shelter together. what did you see? what came through your doors last night? >> it's just devastating what is going on right now. we did open up one of our church locations and had the staff mobilize there and honestly, working with state agencies and are the red across, trying to finalize details to make locations an official drop point. scrambling and working hard along with everybody else, trying to do everything we can to help people, to meet immediate needs and make a difference in the community like all oklahomans are.

>> pastor, as you are talking to me, so our audience understand, there is hazmat manager and a rescue team, search and rescue going on around us that we have a camera on right now as well. just to have people understand, pastor, how many different arm there of of the recovery process. people need to search, and people like you need to open doors and welcome in families. the need will come in waves. people who didn't see last night, they need food, clothing, you will start to see people, yes? >> absolutely. it does come in waves and right now we're focused on doing everything we can to meet immediate needs and work with the amazing rescue workers. in oklahoma, we're no stranger to these types of tragedies, we're thankful that oklahomians are hard workers, full of faith here, our people are resilient, and a lot of crying going on right now. but we know how to work together

and we'll see a lot of good stories come out of this as well. amazing the way our teams will partner here and appreciative and grateful to all of you forgiven the coverage we knee. focused on immediate needs and honestly, chris, you know, in a few weeks it will settle down here and that is when we will really dig in. make the commitment to help people in the long haul. >> an important point, pastor. dent e doesn't end just because the tornado is gone. cnn/impact. go to our website. organizations there like the pastors trying to help. go there and help out with the need that will grow. we'll leave you with pictures of searches going on. dogs are wagging tails because they are working. hopefully no horrible discovers, hopefully so many more people found alive as we move through the tornados in moore, oklahoma. we'll take a break, be right

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all right. you see it the dogs working.

this team show up next to where we're broadcasti ining from. you get a good sense of what is required on every structure in this community. a perimeter of six or eight men. inside, dogs, three or four of them, working, sniffing. the bark doing be signals, excitement, the trainers know how to deal with that, and what they do, they have no follow the dogs through the debris field. we're showing you this, very painstaking worth, detail oriented and dangerous. they have to find their way through it. the dogs as well. they, of course, much more nimble and able to make it through easily. you are watching chief, this dog's name right now. he's working, back with his trainer right now. barking, that's part of his work, communication between trainer and the dog. doesn't necessarily mean they found something. they have to find and hold thumb through this. it takes time. sophisticated work, and it's dangerous and there is so much of it to do.

because there are beings like this that have fallen down all over. the area in oklahoma, comes in waves, debris on the road, then you start to see homes have been sprayed. like power washed with mud. then you start to see big things are missing, trees. power lines down, street lights have stopped. everything gone, and you get to this point. this is the medical center. people were going to take shelter, patients moved to safe. staff all accounted for. but when this happens to the place that is supposed to be a safe place, imagine what happened everywhere else. that's why devastation is complete and daunting in this community right now. yes, we're hearing numbers. 51 confirmed dead. 20 of them children. a number of children came from one elementary school. this torrent hit at 3:00 in the afternoon when kids getting out of school as we know. kids in the basement.

that school happened to have, building happened to have a basement. flooding, lives were lost. numbers will change. searches like this so active and ongoing, communication is tough here, and cell communication is difficult, and the numbers will go up. where this ranks ultimately, we don't know. doesn't really married, devastation is so great for this community. cnn.com/impact. you can figure out how to give. part of the responsibility of all of us in these situations. these could be our families, people you know. they lost their homes, so many lost loved ones, looking for them. hopefully they find them. search teams like this, all over the place. coming from surrounding neighborhoods as well. one of the images that captured for us, what happened, the scenes at one of the schools, on the cover of "the oklahomian" this morning. i hope they are putting up the picture now. i thought these were parents so

happy to get their kids back. the man strong, his face bloodied, holding the kid who melted into his arms, the woman who i thought was a mother, maybe she is. bloodied, but happy because she has a kid. they weren't those kids' parents. they are teachers. stories we're hearing about teachers once again becoming much more than educators, but protectors and first responders. that school was such a traumatic place for some, wondering what was going to happen. couldn't get through. many got happy endings, many did not. now, the person, the photographer who took that picture, his name is paul he helstrom. can you hear me? >> yes, i can. >> the picture you took brings it home. can you set the scene of what was going on when you took the photo? >> yes, i had just arrived probably within about five minutes after the tornado had

passed, and came into that neighborhood and noticed the school there, and children pouring out of the school. i got my cameras together, ran over as fast as i could to try and document that. and -- and most of these that you were seeing there in the photo were teachers as far as i know, some of them injured, but still taking time to care for the kids first. and as far as a know, all the kids were taken out safely. >> all right. that's the best part. as far as you know, kids you are seeing there, no casualties, reunited. didn't see kids -- didn't see anybody in a bad way there, did you? >> well, there were some injuries it looked like with some of the teachers, like the photo that you mentioned there. another that had a pretty bad injury to her foot or ankle.

and a number of others bloodied. but it's my understanding that everyone escaped at least alive >> all right. they are putting another mike on me. paul, do you still got me? >> yes, i do. >> okay. obviously everything is difficult right now in the community. communications are difficult. power is difficult. in terms of what you're seeing on the ground there, people coming together, paul, what have you witnessed through your lens of how people are helping each other? >> well, i was one of the first ones on the scene before the rescuers got there but just the immediate moment the teachers themselves were just amazing how they cared for the kids and went back in and got more kids out. then shortly the rescue workers arrived and the police, fire department, ambulance workers and took care of people. they had the police trying to

remove rubble to see if anyone else was still in the school. but the emotion of seeing parents come together with their children for the first moment finding them alive and still well was exciting. >> even though they lost so much and even though they are hurt, knowing their loved ones are okay made all the difference. do you see that are in their fa and hear that in their voices? >> most definitely. when i first got there before most of the parents probably, it was pandemonium with children crying everywhere, bloody teachers and so forth. very quickly things started coming together. everyone worked together to get the kids reunited with parents and at least for kids at that school things worked out very well. a lot of scared kids but all

alive. >> thank you very much. thank you for talking to us about the photo and thank you for taking it. that image brings through the experience of so many on the ground. we'll take a break right now. 40,000 homes without power. homes lost. people have lost everything searching for loved ones. search and rescue very active. we've been watching it all around us. stay with us as we take a break and come back for more coverage of this ongoing situation where people need your help. >> i had to hold onto the wall to keep myself safe because i didn't want to fly away in the tornado. >> we had to pull a car off the front hallway off a teacher. she had three little kids you kids shouldittle kids count yourselves lucky.

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at 3:00 p.m. local time, a tornado came through and devastated this community. the 50,000 people here, just about everyone has been affected in a terrible way by this horrible tornado. it came through. you can see what's going on around us. parts of this community were just leveled by this. the numbers so far 51 confirmed dead. 20 of those children. about 150 people went to hospitals. many are walking wounded. the good news search and rescue is very active. they've only made it through halfway of what they have to cover. the storm, damage potential, strength rating, all that is yet to come.

we know that in some parts it was two miles wide and 20 miles long. in its wake, the lieutenant governor told us it was like a blade from a lawn mower going through these homes and these people's lives. just near us right now is stephanie elam in a community to tell us what's going on there. stephanie, what are you seeing? >> reporter: i have to tell you, we drove in overnight from houston and there's nothing to prepare for you what you see when you get out here. we are not far from you. just a short drive from where you are right now, chris. we came up here and we actually did find the owners of this house. i came to see what they could find. they are going through and finding random things that have been there like the owner's great grandfather pick ax. and kids' toys blown out to the front of the house. these kind of things that are

just scattered throughout picking them up and bringing them to the front. one of the owners telling me a box of tax returns from a few years ago survived. it was just in a paper box. that survived while so many other things have just been destroyed and so we asked them because they have their ties to missouri, i asked the owner of the house just how bad this was compared to other tornadoes and here's what he had to say. >> they just said one of our little wrestlers is missing. >> reporter: how old is he? >> don't even know who it is yet. >> reporter: you don't know. you just know one is missing. this is hard. it's more than just your family. it's also your community. we're glad your family is okay. >> yep. we'll be fine. we'll rebuild again.

>> reporter: that's a little different sound than i thought you were going to hear. as far as the tornadoes are concerned, he says they are both just as bad. there is so much devastation but he had just found out -- he's very involved. his 15-year-old son is a wrestler and found out this younger wrestler that he worked with that is missing. he doesn't know which wrestler it is that's missing right now. as you look around here, they did let some residents to campaign in to see if they could find a pet or one little thing, they don't want them here because they've done the sweep looking for people but what they haven't done yet is gone back to check gas lines. that's what they want to do now because water is not working. they do not want to have fires. look at this. you see this wire right here? that's just ripped out. it's an outlet sitting out here. it's just pulled from the wall and just sitting out here. these are the kind of things they're looking for to make sure there's nothing that's live that could be out here that could start a fire or anything like that with a gas line. they want to make sure

everything is safe before residents come back in here. so when you take a look at it, a lot of devastation and almost unfathomable what these people are dealing with. >> just the beginning. stephanie, be very safe where you are. a lot of live power wires are down. open gas mains. 50,000 people without power right now. the water treatment plant for moore is not online. they are asking people to conserve water. in some places it's not available. there are a lot of obstacles that people are trying to survive and also search and rescue to deal with these impassible roads and it will slow down the process. there's also weather moving in here now as we speak. they've been warned of this. they do not believe it will be the kind of situation where tornadoes are the risk at least not for here but rain on top of this situation, cold on top of this situation makes it much worse especially for all of these families that are desperately searching for things and they've lost so much. it's going to add to misery here

and it will add to the need. cnn.com/impact. please go to our website and find ways that you can help. the help is going to be immediate and also long standing. people are going to need us for a long time to come. they know how to rebuild here in oklahoma. they are strong people. they're people of faith and it gets them through but they need our help. right now we are waiting on the president of the united states to make a statement at the white house and come out and talk about this. jessica yellin is standing by for that. jessica, do you have us? what do we expect? >> reporter: i can tell you that right now president obama as we speak is receiving a briefing on the ongoing disaster response. he is here with his top homeland security advisers and the deputy administrator of fema getting that briefing. the deputy of fema is here because the director of fema is on a flight en route to where you are right now. the president directed craig fugate to participate and direct the federal response on the

ground in oklahoma in person. i can tell you that the president was updated throughout the night as you would expect and he issued a disaster declaration so that federal response, federal money and people, could get to the affected towns right away. among the things that we already know are there from fema teams, one special team that coordinates with state and local officials. another that's assisting with search and rescue. another that is supporting the emergency response and yet another that's assessing damage. i can tell you just one example of what they're doing. they have ipads that they brought with them because so many people have lost their wireless service and their cell service and obviously can't register for federal emergency support so fema response teams, federal people, are walking around with those helping to register people. we expect the president out as soon as he's done with his briefing here, chris.

>> all right. jessica, thank you. if nothing else, the president will kind of layer the importance of people caring about what's happening here and getting involved. the situation is over in terms of the tornado but just beginning in terms of the recovery. lightning is starting to touch down around us as we're waiting for more weather to come through here as if these people haven't dealt with enough. the governor here is obviously mary fallin dealing with this situation in oklahoma. >> they're still looking for possible survivors. it's a tremendous debris field. it is massive. it was surreal just to walk upon that last night. there were hundreds of people that were there. they had jackhammers and saws cutting through metal and sledgehammers trying to get under the debris. we know that some of the walls

fell over and there were children that were found under the walls itself at that school. we had all hands on deck to do everything we can to look through debris itself and certainly throughout the community. my heart just broke last night for the parents that didn't know the current condition of their children and where they were. >> so difficult for the governor. so frustrating not to be able to get help. we hear about police officers who can't respond to homes because they can't find the street signs. and if they're not from this area obviously or even if they are not understanding the grid luckily moore is built on a grid but there's every layer of difficulty here and now once again as we see this dramatic lightning touching down, there's going to be more for this community to deal with. >> it's looking ominous right now. we're far from over even though the tornado came through yesterday. we still have a long way to go. you see the devastation here with this hospital, this bowling alley, this is the scene throughout moore, oklahoma, and

at that school where i was at earlier. the plaza towers school. we heard about seven children who were found dead after the tornado yesterday and rescuers are still there right now. they have been there overnight. they have been searching through the rubble which is no easy task. the entire school collapsed. only a couple walls standing. they are searching through that rubble looking for more survivors. illuminated by flood lights, rescue teams searched tirelessly throughout the night sifting through mountains of debris where plaza towers elementary school once stood. in some places, the debris was ten feet high. underneath every parents' worse nightmare. the bodies of schoolchildren who tried to seek shelter from a ferocious tornado. many more still missing. the race to rescue dozens of students and teachers began riot after the massive two-mile wide tornado ripped through two elementary schools directly in

its path. at hardest hit plaza towers elementary. a third grade class huddled in hallway of their school. worried parents sent to a staging area at a nearby church in search of answers. with each passing hour the operation went from a rescue to a recovery mission. the heart wrenching reality of the storm's fury hard to comprehend. >> all right. communications here are tough. let's try to get a microphone back on pam there. operator error. it's one of the things you deal with out in the field. one of the things you were able to capture there with this school was not knowing. this happened at about 3:00 p.m. local time. kids were just getting out of school. for these parents, they didn't have cell. they couldn't communicate with the school and didn't know what they would find.

>> yesterday morning they dropped their child off at school and this happened as they were going to pick up their child from school. there was one interview that was compelling. >> here comes the president of the united states with words about oklahoma. >> a series of storms swept across the plains yesterday in one of the most destructive tornadoes in history sliced through the towns of newcastle and safest place they knew. their school. our prayers are with the people of oklahoma today. our gratitude is with teachers who gave their all to shield their children with the neighbors, first responders and

emergency personnel who raced to help as soon as the tornado passed and with all of those who as darkness fell searched for survivors through the night. as a nation, our full focus right now is on the urgent work of rescue and hard work of recovery and rebuilding that lies ahead. yesterday i spoke with governor fallin to make it clear to oklahomans, they would have all of the resources that they need at their disposal. last night i issued a disaster declaration to expedite those resources, to support the governor's team in the immediate response and to offer direct assistance to folks who have suffered loss. i also just spoke with mayor lewis of moore, oklahoma, to ensure that he's getting everything that he needs. i've met with secretary napolitano this morning and my homeland security and counterterrorism adviser lisa

monaco to underscore that point that oklahoma needs to get everything that it needs right away. the fema administrator, craig fugate, is on his way to oklahoma as we speak. fema staff was first deployed to oklahoma's emergency operations center on sunday as the state already was facing down the first wave of deadly tornadoes. yesterday fema activated urban search and rescue teams from texas, nebraska, and tennessee to assist in the ongoing search and rescue efforts and a mobile response unit to boost communications and logistical support. so the people of moore should know that their country will remain on the ground, there for them, beside them, as long as it takes. there are homes and schools to rebuild, businesses and hospitals to reopen, parents to console, first responders to

comfort and of course frightened children who will need our continued love and attention. there are empty spaces where there used to be living rooms and bedrooms and classrooms and in time we're going to need to refill those spaces with love and laughter and community. we don't yet know the full extent of the damage from this week's storm. we don't know both the human and economic losses that may have occurred. we know that severe rumbling of weather, bad weather, through much of the country still continues and we're also preparing for a hurricane season that begins next week. but if there is hope to hold onto not just in oklahoma but around the country it's the knowledge that the good people there and in oklahoma are better prepared for this type of storm

than most and what they can be certain of is that americans from every corner of this country will be right there with them opening our homes, our hearts, to those in need because we're a nation at that stands with our fellow citizens as long as it takes. we have seen that spirit in joplin, in tuscaloosa, we saw that spirit in boston and breezy point and that's what the people of oklahoma are going to need from us right now. for those of you who want to help, you can go online right now to the american red cross which is already on the ground in moore. already we've seen the university of oklahoma announce it will provide housing for displaced families. we've seen local churches and companies open their doors and their wallets and last night the people of joplin dispatched a team to help the people of moore. for all those who have been affected, we recognize that you face a long road ahead.

in some cases there will be enormous grief that has to be absorbed, but you will not travel that path alone. your country will travel it with you fueled by our faith in the almighty and our faith in one another. so our prayers are with the people of oklahoma today and we will back up those prayers with deeds for as long as it takes. thank you very much. >> all right. that's the president of the united states giving his words of consolation, his promise of resources. and his belief in the hope of the future especially in a community that holds together like it does here at moore. you also heard that the situation in moore, oklahoma, is being reflected by urgency by those around it. joplin, missouri. remember a couple years ago terrible tornado that tore through that community. they sent teams to help. the national guard has been

mobilized on the ground here. doing well. search and rescue is ongoing right now. the senator from oklahoma said uncertainty. we still don't know. we can't measure. that's very much something to keep in mind. jessica yellin, as we were listening to the president speak, his words are powerful. his presence even more so. communities like moore, oklahoma, need him on the ground to bring the focus and attention to this place. what's your guess as to when we might expect to see the president in moore, oklahoma? >> reporter: i would guess, chris, that he doesn't come at least for three days or so. a few days at least because he knows the role here is as president of the united states to be healer in chief. you heard it in his words there. an outpouring of compassion and concern from all americans spoken here from the white house but for the president to go and visit requires enormous

resources on the ground and to protect the president and clear a way for him and it's choice of presidents, republican, democrat, no matter who is in office, to put that trip off for a few days in the aftermath of such a tragedy to make sure that all of those urgent law enforcement and response personnel are dealing with the people on the ground and not with bringing a president or any leader in for a visit. i would expect a few days wait before he's on the ground but we'll see him there soon. if i can point out one other thing that happened while the president was speaking, the speaker of the house, john boehner, made an important point right now. one of the things folks where you are need is funding to respond to this crisis over time and there was a huge fight in washington after sandy about money getting to people. the money was held up for almost two months before it got there

and speaker boehner just came out and said he will work with the president to make sure money gets out the door and to the people quickly and that there is no fight in washington over funding for response. they'll work out the politics of how that happens but speaker boehner said he's ready to partner with the president to make sure that people of oklahoma get what they need from the federal government, chris. >> jessica, if they can't agree on this, they won't agree on anything. the need couldn't be more comprehensive no matter what your political stripe. thank you for the reporting. let us know if there is any update in the president's plans to come down here. surely we'll be a welcome face. thank you for the reporting. appreciate it, jessica. as weather continues to close in here now, there is so much need. it's going to continue. you have to remember there is nothing that destroys like a tornado. all natural events whether it's a fire or a hurricane. they're all horrible. there is something unique in the destructive violence of a

tornado. the way it twists through and completely destroys communities, takes out the wiring, takes out everything you need to survive. the people here are depending on each other. that is getting them through. we believe search and rescue is not even 50% of the way through. that gives us hope. that's why i'm laying off on the numbers of casualties and loss. we have been telling you that the government is putting out the number of 51 so far confirmed dead, 20 of them children. 150 injured. but 100 also rescued and that's just official count. we know communities are pulling each other out of this danger. we know they are. we see the walking wounded. we know what's going on. we'll hold out hope before we have to report what is inevitable in situations like this. yesterday the focus of the fear was were these kids. horrible to lose your home. any life is precious. it was 3:00. school was just getting out. so many kids had to be pulled back in to these elementary

schools and parents didn't have cell phones and they didn't know where their kids were. when they found them, the scenes were beautiful. we have moments for you on tape of parents coming to the school and finding their kids and it's worth watching. take a look and a listen.

>> all fifth graders right here! >> step over the wires. >> step over the wires.

fifth grade! fifth graders. >> thank you. >> he was so brave. he was so brave. he was so brave. he was so brave. >> it seems chaotic. they're standing outside. the school is destroyed. they're muddy and hurt. can you imagine being that mom and you couldn't get them by phone. you have a first grader.

you don't need to have kids to appreciate that kind of fear of loss. and these moments as tragic as they are and chaotic as it is around them, these are the beautiful moments. these are moments people pray for when they find themselves in situations like this here in moore, oklahoma. all around us there are people standing in front of what used to be their home, the home is gone. people have lost loved ones. people are searching for what matters most. it's going to continue for days and days here. we hope today as all these people are outside and unsheltered that rains hold off and they are able to find some type of cover. we'll come back on the other side and give you the latest from authorities and the latest from the ground and what's happening here in the aftermath of a massive tornado that rocked moore, oklahoma. stay with us.

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we've lost everything. we don't have anything left. and my parents i can't get ahold of them. we have no cell. if they are out there and they're watching, please let them know that i and my family is okay and we'll make it. we'll be okay. everything is gone. >> the key word for this woman like so many others, we. she still has her family. she still has her hope for the future and has what matters most and that's the face of many here in moore, oklahoma. a massive tornado ripped through this community yesterday. 50,000 people here. just about every one of them affected in one way or another. the storm at its widest point

two miles. 20 miles long. we were told by the lieutenant governor is was like a lawn mower blade going through homes. nothing destroys like a tornado. just completely devastates these wooden houses and buildings around. you are looking at a picture of it there. imagine that coming toward you. 30, 50 miles an hour. two miles wide. it takes out everything in its path. and then what you're left with is what you see now around us. we just heard from the president of the united states. his pledge of help. his belief in the promise for the future. certainly oklahoma knows that. oklahoma knows how to recover. it's done it time and time again better than anywhere else in the country. we're seeing it now with this community coming together and it needs it so much as weather continues to come back in and rain will come here now on top of everything else. flags at half-staff at the white house, across the country, people picking up on that signal. we all know what it means. we know what it's going to mean here. early numbers are in. 51 dead. 20 of them kids. some of those kids died in a

school. this happened at 3:00 in the afternoon. to you who are just tuning in on the west coast and around the world and here to cnn 3:00 in the afternoon the tornado hit. teachers became heroes saved lives covering kids with their own bodies. you hear the sound of the rain. lightning is coming down around us. last thing people need here right now. search and rescue is active. through less than 50%. this morning we spoke to the lieutenant governor. we exchanged text numbers so we can get updates throughout the day. take a look and listen at the interview when he set the scene for the situation for us. here it is. >> the warning was --

>> you couldn't build a basement or shelter in oklahoma unless there's dynamite. that's not accurate. our neighbors right next to us had a shelter put in their home in the last month. they dug it out in their garage. they hired a company to do that. many homes have basements. not every home does. it's a matter of what the homeowner wanted to do and what the builder wanted to do.

>> do schools have shelters in them? >> some schools do have shelters. the old fallout shelters are basements. this school that we're so concerned about plaza towers had a basement. quite frankly that's why some of the children drown because they were in the basement area. water came in. it was what it was with the tragedy yesterday afternoon. there are basements. there are shelters. unfortunately not everybody has one. >> lieutenant governor is now out on the ground like so many others trying to survey and help. cnn.com/impact. go there. it's the page to show you how to help. the need is immediate as in now. it will continue for days, weeks and months. this is a time we come together. as we go to break, this was the rescue that was going on next to us. dogs working. people there necessary to pick through the debris. it's painstaking and difficult and even more so in the rain. they're doing it here in moore,

oklahoma. they're doing everything they can to recover after the tornado. stay with us. >> the amazing thing is our family is safe and all animals in the house are alive and we're most grateful for that. >> i parked about three miles down and ran in. see my mom driving out and she never left. i got lucky. only room left in her entire house is her bedroom where she was at. just by the grace of god. it's amazing. my brother was over helping at the school which is pretty bad. >> what's the scene like over there? >> it's like a battle zone. there's nothing standing. no trees. no houses. no landmarks. you don't even know where you are and where you're standing. i got lucky being a couple blocks over and my house is completely untouched. really makes you think about things. anyone have occasional constipation,

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>> we locked the cellar door when we saw it coming and next thing you know is you see the latch coming undone and we couldn't reach for it and it ripped open the door and glass and debris started slamming on us. >> emotions are raw here in moore, oklahoma. people describing this tornado as if it were a monster that came through here in joplin. they described it as a fist coming flying out of the sky and crushing everything below it. now what you see around us, medical center over my shoulder destroyed. one of the places that was supposed to be more secure. the devastation is obvious here. how they will recover is not. the community is coming together. they are doing all they can search and rescue is ongoing. throughout our reporting on this, we've been trying to stay away from the numbers of casualties. we've been giving you what the government is putting out because that's often how we measure the impact. i will tell you this.

much of what they're hearing on the government side as well is piecemeal. it's unproven. it's not fact at this time. there is a chance, the likelihood is that numbers get worse as you go through a situation like this. that's common sense. we've seen it too many times. the reports could be wrong. i want to bring in congressman mcbride right now. can you hear me? >> yes. i can hear you. >> all right. moore is part of your district. you know the pain here. i don't know if you can hear but i'm discussing right now that what we're hearing about lives lost here is a very uncertain number, is that right? it could go up and maybe go down. >> the last i heard was at 6:00 this morning it was somewhere around 90 to 100. you know, with the devastation that i've seen with the school

and the housing, the subdivisions and stuff, i don't know that anybody is ready to stick a number on it yet. i know that they just came in and told her lady they found her husband and she was in there crying. it's a really sad time. >> obviously, look, the numbers are meaningless because it's all about the specific loss, every life is precious, and not to be foolhardy in hopefulness but just the idea that this is a very fluid situation and what is known should be in quotes because the reality is just that it's difficult to know anything for sure, isn't that true at this point? >> yeah. you know, yesterday i was at one place where they were pulling out a body, i guess. the sad thing is there was a little pink jeep looking girl's toy sitting there in the driveway. i didn't stay there. i didn't know if it was a child

or an adult. i was just choking back tears trying to be strong, you know, and see that and think it may be a child in that debris broke my heart and then going over to plaza towers when i was over there, they were pulling children out of the school there. it's gut wrenching experience. my family has lived in moore since the 1940s and we've been through several tornadoes here but this is the worst thing i've ever seen. >> why do you say that? what makes this one worse? >> you take the moore hospital. it looks like someone bombed it. i've never seen a building destroyed. that kind of building destroyed to th like that. acres of houses just swept off

the slab. if you didn't have a storm shelter, you didn't ride it through because there was no safe place in these homes. there was no closet to get into because there were no closets left. my mother rode the storm out underneath the stairway in their home and fortunately she survived but it devastated most of the house. >> congressman, what is the deal with shelters, who has them and who doesn't and why? obviously they're not mandated by the state. help give us understanding of how it works here. >> well, i think we're all kind of think we're brave and we stand out in our driveways and watch the storms go by. i will own a shelter after this. i don't have a shelter myself. one of the other representatives and myself were visiting last night as we walked through the neighborhoods of these schools. that's something we want to see next year some legislation so these schools have some place for these children to get to.

the children are sacred. we need to protect these kids. i don't know. you can say it's more government interference but to not have a storm shelter in schools, we have to change. >> that's the question. we are not at a point -- this is not meant as a finger pointing in any way, it's just more of a curiosity of a confusion. why wouldn't schools have storm shelters when this is part of tornado alley, when this can happen, not to this degree thank god but bad things happen weatherwise here. why isn't it part of just the makeup of communities? >> i just think people think they can dodge the bullet. they hit and miss. we haven't had a major one like this since '99. we had a little one that came through moore in 2003. i think we get lacx after one

goes through and it's not a big deal. there's an expense factor. our budget is stretched. the education takes a lot of the money for our state. 50 plus percent. so it's just -- i don't think it's been a priority but i think after this it will become a priority as we build schools. >> i hear you. when we think about you guys in washington and what you're fighting over and what money -- where money goes and what it's for and then you're standing down here and need as so great, i hope that it moves up the list, congressman. it would make a difference in so many people's lives in your own community. >> just to clarify, i am a state representative. congressman cole is the congressman for this area. this is my district as state rep. >> right. thank you for that. thank you for that

clarification. hopefully representative, you know, it's able to be better next time but obviously the urgency is getting through this time. the need is obvious everywhere that we look. what do you hear about how it is going in terms of search and rescue and in terms of having the resources? what are you hearing from your people on the state level? >> we have all of the resources at our fingertips. we brought in people from 77 counties here in oklahoma, search and rescue, police officers, sheriff's department, counties, different counties sent in equipment. we have a staging area at south moore where all of the silver star, cleveland county, district 1, 2 and 3 have their equipment set up. the streets are getting cleared as we speak so we can get in and see more and i know that the fire departments from the state

are here and they're out going through the debris and houses. i've seen a lot of search and rescue dogs. it's amazing. oklahoma is one of those states that when something happens to somebody, they all turn out to help. it's just kind of a good feeling to know that just in a matter of hours -- i mean, i'm talking convoys of vehicles with lights flashing coming in here from cities from far away. >> that's all good news. i'm sorry, representative, got ahead of myself talking to you as an official instead of just another man. how is your family? how are your loved ones? did everyone make it through? >> everyone is fine. my house took minor damage. i was a quarter mile south of the tornado. my parents it went right through

the middle -- i haven't been there. i just got off the phone with my sister and it went through the middle of her house. my mother was hiding under the stairway and rode it out. they are all fine. luckily. my family weathered the storm. >> well, you know, as terrible as it is to hear about your mother hiding under the stairs in this scenario as we've been saying this morning, it puts you on the side of being one of the lucky ones. god bless. i'm happy that your family is okay. thank you for taking the time to talk to us. as the need continues -- >> i would like to be with my family but i've got about 40,000 people here in my district that i got to take care of too. they're safe. i'll take care of these people that aren't right now. >> they're all your family now. they're all your family when they're in need and so get to it, mark. all of the best to you.

let us know if we can help. >> all right. thank you. >> one of the things that's going on the ground here, the national guard. you'll hear their helicopters going above. they're doing a lot of oversight survey to figure out where they need to direct assets. they are on the ground. they are helping with search and rescue. they are saving lives. we've seen video of it. i want to go to barbara starr right now. nobody knows what's going on with the national guard better than you. please fill us in. >> hi, chris. about 240, 250 oklahoma national guard on the ground now we are told. they started moving in last night. extraordinary video as they quickly moved to the devastated plaza towers elementary school to set up some security perimeter so other first responders could get in. look at the pictures. these guys are equipped with the same kind of gear they have in the war zone. night vision goggles. thermal imaging equipment so

they can see that differential between the hot and cold in the debris. try to see if they can locate anyone still alive in the debris and some of the national guard spoke about moving in in those initial minutes. have a listen. >> a team of eight individuals, tactical vehicles and a lot of equipment we would use in combat operations. we're here at ground zero looking to get put into the search and rescue portion to go out with thermal imageers and night vision and see in the dark and hopefully find survivors or at least keep us busy and do some good work. >> everybody wants to get out here and help. that's just part of being a soldier. >> it's crazy. you know, you don't ever really think about it as much when you are home but when you get out here and see the devastation and all of the people that are affected by it, it really hits hard. >> you know, chris, this is what

we have seen in so many communities when they are struck by these massive tragedies. the national guard, of course, lives and works in these areas. this is their family. i can tell you i spoke to a young officer who spent most of last night looking to make contact with her children. they are okay. she was able to locate them. we've just spoken to a very senior national guard commander from oklahoma. spent hours tracking his family down. they are okay. but these folks are on station helping the local police and fire department in the very community where they all live and work. they are as you keep saying, chris, out in oklahoma everyone is family. chris? >> all right. barbara, thank you so much for the reporting on that and the perspective on the national guard. they are invaluable here right now because they need that oversight so much. literally. coming from the birds they have

in the air for the ability to see where the need is because on the ground many of the roads are impassible. our thanks to barbara starr. big challenges. we're getting reporting in, pam brown has been helping me out this morning with it. 50,000 people have no power. and that's going to be difficult to restore in part because of the weather. you have open gas lines. you have live downed power wires which make it difficult for search and rescue. and as the storm front continues to move through this area and lightning touches down, they have to slow their efforts because safety has to be the priority and that's very frustrating for them. it's very frustrating for those in the community and that's the situation here right now. the efforts continue. the manpower is great. but so is the need and the elements are not helping. this is going to be slow. cnn.com/impact. we'll go to break. it's a great chance to go check out that page and see what you can do to help the people here

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orange hazmat vests. that's search and rescue. they are organizing here. they're trying to fix a movie theater that's there. if you would go down, you would see what they put up on it. search and rescue is ongoing even though there are lightning storms going on right here. efforts have been nonstop since this happened. if you go up, show what they wrote on the marquee to show you where this community is even though it's in devastation. on the sign they have written god bless moore. this community is coming together. they are a prayerful community as we've been told. they are leaning on their faith and each other heavily as this day goes on and the rain continues here. acres of homes have been taken out. houses are now hay stacks of sticks. as you drive into the area it starts with debris and a spray of mud all over everything and then trees are gone and power

lights are gone and then everything is gone and that takes you to where we are right now over my shoulder is the medical center. a safe zone for people. they were supposed to come in times of need and now if you look at it, it's gone. they tracked down the entire staff. they got their patients out. it was not that safe place. many people here don't have shelters. many don't have basements. they had to ride it out as best they could and it wound up being devastated for so many. numbers are continuing to come in. they're soft but there is human loss of life here. many kids were lost. this was during the school day. 3:00 p.m. in the afternoon. kids were just getting out of school. it magnified the intensity and concern of those kids. many put themselves in harm's way to find their kids. many timers became heroes. we hear stories of them covering kids and saving kids' lives. when this was going on, we believe that the storm at its widest was two miles wide. the devastation stretches 20

miles. winds of 200 miles an hour. i learned all this from talking to a couple storm trackers, colt and lauren, earlier this morning. listen to their experience of watching this massive twister. >> complete devastation. it was -- i still don't know what to think about it. early in the day looked to be a decent day for tornadoes. perimeters were there. plenty of shear. never expected something this violent. >> you have seen a lot of this stuff, right? you come around and you see natural disasters. you see tornadoes. how did this one stand out for you? >> this one from the very beginning you could just tell where the hook was on radar and when the tornado dropped down southwest of town you could tell and look where it was going and you just knew it was going to be the worst possible spot to hit. >> why was it so bad? so much built up there? >> the energy was huge. you had a lot of inflow coming in with updraft. it was really cranking and right

through moore across i-35. when we crossed 35 there were people stopped on the interstate ahead of us to the north. it was horrifying. >> we have a clip of what was there. let's play what storm chasers were facing yesterday. take a look and listen at this. >> houses are completely leveled. it's unrecognizable. >> it doesn't look like a development. >> oh no. >> my god, guys. >> now, we've been hearing the word it looks like the tsunami for those of who had to cover that. what is it that happens as this passes over a home, cars, what is the ability to do to things? >> it's like a bomb went off. the field we came up to rerewe realized was a subdivision and there were people crawling out of the mud. we were first on the scene and

to the west there was a day care center and first they thought three children were missing but thankfully they were reported found. they were crawling out of boards. the day care did not exist anymore. there was a horse from a nearby pasture actually in the day care still alive bleeding and trying to get people out of there as quickly as possible. we noticed a huge rushing sound and we thought it was water and we could smell natural gas. everyone was trying to get as many people as possible to vehicles there to get them south. >> one of the things we're dealing with here is how difficult to get search and rescue in and get big equipment in. what did you see that substantiates that claim it would take a while to clear the areas. >> power lines and power poles with debris strewn across the roads. some of them were impassible. you would have to bring in heavy equipment to plow the road to get through and you will get flat tires.

>> those storm trackers were talking to us about the weather today. it's thundering here and lightning starting to come down. on and off rain. it's making everything more difficult especially for search and rescue. even more importantly for these families who now have nowhere to call home. luckily this is oklahoma. in the community of moore, they take each other in and treat them like family in times of need and right now the need is great. look on your screen. cnn.com/impact. please go there and see how you can help these people. they could be your family and in a way as americans they are. our coverage here is going to continue. we're trying to get the latest information on casualties. the latest information on search and rescue. less than 50% of the 20 mile area has been searched so there's still hope here. we'll take a break. when we come back, john berman will pick up the coverage. stay with us as cnn takes you through what's going on in moore, oklahoma. we'll be right back. [ jennifer garner ] why can't powerful sunscreen feel great on your skin?

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welcome back to cnn's continuing live coverage of the aftermath of oklahoma tornadoes. i'm john berman standing in a neighborhood right now in the town of moore, oklahoma. you can see what happened to this neighborhood. simply flattened. everywhere you look there's metal, twisted metal debris like this on the ground here. the wood is splintered everywhere. take a look at this. you see this nail poking out of the wood. you see how dangerous something like this is as this wood was flying around in the force of the storm with winds topping 2 moon mil0