of joplin. >> you're an experienced storm chaser. you do this for scientific reasons and create very valuable research by doing this. there must have been moments last night when you were fearful for your life, wasn't there? >> yes. one of the things that happens with this tornado when i was going down 20th street in central joplin heading east on 20th street toward the joplin high school, the tornado widened so wide moving to the east and north edge of the tornado was about six blocks north of me and as it continued rapid expansion not moving to the north but tornado getting wider north and south, the tornado came up to 20th street and had debris hitting the vehicles and cars were being picked up and spun at me and then hurled back southward into the tornado as the tornado continued to track south of 20th street through the heart of the city of joplin. >> the weather there is still very, very bad. we're hearing there's a 50-50 chance of another tornado tonight in joplin. what kind of a device g

we were targeting joplin. came into town literally minutes later, and the next thing we see is tragedy all around us. people in the streets wandering aimlessly. i get choked up, i have to be honest with you. we know these things can happen, but i think when you see them with your own two eyes and you witness them firsthand, it puts them in a whole different light. >> you had walking wounded behind you. people who hadn't been triaged medically yet. >> i saw things i didn't want to see, people who had been wounded, people who perished in the tornado. you heart went out to the people who live here because it was their family members, their friends, their pets. everybody was in a state of shock. i was. >> al, was i right as a layperson, this is about as much energy as mother nature can focus on one area? >> it is, and we have more. there's a risk stretching from texas.land to but there's a strong risk tomorrow in this area, including joplin, missouri, and the weather service is now saying it may be a high risk. we

we have a tornado watch out for joplin, through the overnight period, but no warning for joplin yet.going to get rough there, regardless of a tornado, in about 2 1/2 hours' time, by about 11:00 or midnight, you're going to get rough weather and you're going to need to take whatever cover you can. the danger here, regardless of a tornado, if we get winds of 30, 40 miles an hour, there's enough dangerous debris on the ground that will be thrown around. we're worried about that, also worried about what's going on in dallas. you heard ed lavendera earlier. we have this tornado warning out for dallas proper, especially, for dallas-ft. worth. the airport itself, they've taken precautions, have had passengers moving into -- oh, you can see a little bit of a hook there. it's not just oklahoma, not just kansas, not just nebraska. we easily have over half a dozen tornado warnings out right now, piers, and all of this is pushing off to the east. and tomorrow afternoon and tomorrow night promises to be a rough day across the mississippi river valley as well. >> rob, thank you very much, indeed.

please, be seated. >> i love you, barack obama. >> i love joplin! i love joplin. >> we love joplin!plin. [ applause ] >> thank you, governor, for that powerful message, but more importantly for being here with and for your people every step of the way. we are grateful to you, to reverend garris. father monaghan, i'm so glad you got in that tub. >> yeah! >> to merlin brown for that incredibly powerful message. to senator claire mccaskill who's been here and congressman billy long, mayor woolston, to craig fugate who doesn't get a lot of attention, but he heads up fema, our emergency response at the federal level. he's been going from us the tus joplin and everywhere in between tirelessly doing outstanding work. we're grateful for him. gale mcgovern, the president of the national red cross who has contributed mightily to the rebuilding efforts here. most of all to the family and friends of all those who have been lost and all those who have been affected. today we gather to celebrate the lives of those we've lost to the storm here in joplin and across the midwest, to keep in our praye

of joplin at the time. to go help. i brought my camera with me. i thought i would take pictures of downed signs and missing a i awnings. my prayers are with people in joplin and i work for the national cancer society and we were forming what we can do to help a cancer patient in the area. if a cancer treatment can't get treated they can call our 1-800 number. the rest of the day was checking on friends. making sure people were okay in my family and the surrounding community and knowing that the search and rescue people are doing what they do best. >> they are dramatic images here. which image struck you the most? >> the image that stuck with me the most was the image where i was up on top of a hill behind where the walmart used to be. i was looking off to the west. i could see to the horizon and st. john's and destruction and academy and walmart were demolished and a pickup truck someone stuck an american flag in the tailgate. it reminded me of the countless volunteers, men and women in the community and ma

joplin officially was only rated 198. i don't know who is splitting hairs between 198 and 200 miles per hour, wolf. >> i don't think anyone can tell the difference. let us know what the latest is. chad myers, thank you. let's go to the disaster and the rescue operation. >> reporter: they are on the ground working 24/7 and going to the damaged areas. they are working on a grid system. that's what they started working at. going by foot, neighborhood by neighborhood, block by block. the weather may complicate things later on today. you heard chad talking about the tornado watch in this general area in the country but we may get thunderstorms later tonight, which could complicate the rescue efforts. getting more information about the death toll of the 118 people right now reported killed. 11 died in one place, the greenbriar nursing home. two people from that nursing home remain in critical condition. now, we talked about the injured, the dead, about several hundred people were injured but about 1500 people remain unaccounted

he joinses i live from joplin. tell us what happened. >> well, it didn't look that threatening at the time. we knew the sirens had been on and they went on but the electricity started to flicker, the computers went down. so i decided to open up the back door just to make sure that it was okay back there. when i opened up i saw a massive wall. the magnitude was unbelievable. it was your whole peripheral vision of field -- or field of vision. >> so what did you do? >> well, i saw that and i knew we were in serious trouble, obviously. but i didn't want to panic the girl i was working with and i said, we've got to go, go, go. so we headed for the front door and then desi saw that sammy was shutting down a register in the convenience store, talked to her. i said, we don't have much time. we've got to go. with that, i was at the front door. it took the door out of my hand and jerked it off. i said, we don't have time. we've got to get to the bathroom. so we headed into the bathroom at that point in the center part of the

not to hit necessarily joplin proper, but that area under the gun. >> and ali velshi is in joplin.h day for rescuers yesterday, ali, because of the rain and because of lightning. >> yeah. >> it was not a great day for search and recovery efforts and then today, now this concern later this afternoon about potentially more bad weather in the region. >> so the weather's beautiful right now, and it's a window of opportunity. we were just talking to the head of emergency management here who said he's really going to try and get as much done as they can, try to wrap this search and rescue up by the end of the day. you know, christine, you're from the midwest. you've heard tornado sirens, you know what it's like. sometimes as a viewer i wonder what'sing to gained from continuing to -- what's to be gained from continuing to cover these things. take a look at this damage. it's hard to comprehend. there are cars crumpled like tin cans. no foliage on any of the trees. there are no houses. these were all houses. for mileses as far as we can se these were supposed to be houses. the one building

back to joplin., if the past is any indication, carol, the economic losses in joplin are expected to be big. the national atmospheric and oceanic administration says the price tag can end up varying widely depending how severe the storm is and where it hits. joplin is a very densely populated area, which usually means higher costs. it's been a terrible year for severe weather. we've seen a record-setting number of storms, five severe weather outbreaks just in april. insurance company eon says damage is estimated to be $4 billion in insured losses. we haven't seen insured losses in april in that high in at least five years, and this doesn't even count what happened in joplin yesterday. of course, all the damage counts, damage to homes, businesses, what's inside them, their cars, and analysts say this means you can see higher insurance rates, likely, because of in these hard-hit areas, those insurance rates could go up. and we're just now entering the peak of the severe weather season, so this could ju

we are live in joplin, missouri tonight. a town bracing for a storm that's expected to hit any moment. death toll rising here in joplin, missouri to 124, and a staggering number of people unaccounted for. some 1,500 according to one local official. new tornadoes tonight also in our southwest, in oklahoma with fatalities and a tornado watch and curfew in effect here. as i said, that storm expected to hit some time in the next few minutes here. we're hoping to stay on the air. we've moved to a more secure location. i want to show you what's been happening in oklahoma, the storm there, simply unbelievable. this funnel cloud cut a tractor trailer in half. the driver escaped with his life. it was not the only tornado on the ground. at least four people killed west of oklahoma city in canadian county. at one point the national weather service had to evacuate its norman oklahoma storm prediction center. take a look. >> wow. woe got lightning really close. where is it? yeah. >> okay, we got another tornado on the ground. we're going

one reason much of joplin is without power. less than a mile into our journeys, you see the first homes that lost parts of their roof. you can see on this, a sign, looters will be shot. power company crews were working on. repairing is down. electrical lines. that will be vital to this area's recovery. we're now about three miles into this journey. you can see behind me that by the time the tornado got here, it destroyed almost everything in its path including one of the iconic images of the disaster, st. john's hospital. four miles into the path, this is where we first came. we spoke with the family who was trying to salvage what they could despite a driving rain and hailstorm. >> it start off with hail. i'm used to that. it went insane after that. >> here's the collapsed home depot where we met this 17-year-old who's desperately searching for her father. >> my dad and my uncle are in there. i'm hoping and praying to god they're oklahoma. >> turns out they were buried in that rubble. so we're now seven miles to the east of whe

joplin, missouri. it was exactly one week ago that an ef-5 tornado ripped through the city killing at least 142 people in minutes. a moment of silence will happen at 6:41 eastern. 35 minutes from now. it will mark the precise instant that tornado hit. our dan lothian is traveling with the president. dan, people are happy the president came or was it a distraction? >> reporter: no, they were pleased the president did make a visit. he was overseas for a number of days and was not able to come here any sooner than now, but according to white house aids throughout the time of his journeys across europe he did get briefed by his top aides and received a briefing this morning. the president flying in here and he circled around the area where it was most heavily impacted by that tornado. the president getting an aerial view and then landing on the ground along with some local state officials. the president had a chance to see the damage and devastation up close. he also met with some of the people who survive

we'll take a break here in joplin. when we come back, some of the day's other news including a conversation with israeli prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, a man at the center of the news today, hundreds of miles from here. >>> back from joplin, missouri. as promised we have to get to some of the other news of this day. halfway across the country specifically. on capitol hill, israel's prime minister was cheered over and over again during a speech to a joint session of congress today. benjamin netanyahu said israel is prepared to make painful compromises for peace with palestinians but will not, as president obama has called for, return to its borders before the '67 mideast war. nor he said will israel negotiate with terrorists by which he meant hamas. >> i believe we can fashion a brilliant future for our children, but israel will not negotiate with the palestinian government backed by the palestinian version of al qaeda. that we will not do. [ applause ] >> again, several standing ovations. late this afternoon, our

that is joplin tonight. a week ago the people of joplin were in shock.hing anyone had seen, ripped through the heart of that city, mowing down everything in their path. today president obama went to see for himself the devastation and to bring words of comfort and encouragement to the badly wounded community. at least 142 people were lost in those deadly minutes. our dan lothian traveled there with the president. >> reporter: before touching down air force one flew over joplin, missouri, giving the president an aerial view of the devastation. what took months and years to rebuild was destroyed in a few moments. homes, businesses and anything else in the tornado's path. on the ground it was a somber president surveying the breathtaking damage up close, meeting with officials, survivors and promising not to abandon this city. >> what i've been telling every family i've met here is we're going to -- we're going to be here long after the cameras leave. we are not going to stop until joplin's fully back on its feet. >> reporter: there is plenty of pain here,

. >> smith: good evening, again, from joplin, missouri. even as rescue crews here continue to search for victims, there is a threat tonight of even more dangerous weather. take a look. those areas in red east and west of joplin have the greatest risk of tornadoes through tomorrow. that includes oklahoma where cbs affiliate kwtv captured these pictures of a tornado forming this afternoon. this is news 9 meteorologist nick bender reporting from a helicopter. >> i would almost say with this rotation guys a tornado is going to be imminent here. there's the funnel. i believe we've got debris on the ground, guys. we've got a tornado on the ground. >> yeah, that's a tornado on the ground. >> look at that rotation on the ground. that's amazing. >> the funnel is really starting to grow. you've got vortex there on the ground. you have vortexes there spinning around on the ground. it's got to be. whoa! we just had a big c.g. right out the window real close to us. there's a high likelihood of a large tornado, multivortex tornado could be back there on

an american tragedy in joplin, missouri. of 47,000, there is destruction as far as the eye can see in just about every direction. >> oh, yeah, including at the hospital where devastation there was endless, so bad, get this, medical supplies from inside the building were found almost 100 miles away. diane sawyer has more. >> reporter: as the tornado right out of a nightmare tore through joplin, citizens huddled inside buildings in the dark. [ screaming ] >> reporter: listen, as these people feel, sense what is around them. [ screaming ] >> jesus, jesus, jesus! >> reporter: a scene described by sheila and mark harrington, as they huddled inside a giant hospital, st. john's, in the emergency room. >> there was no light. and we had very little flashlights. they were screaming and looking for their loved ones and saying that they couldn't find them. and they wanted someone to help them. >> reporter: more than 100 patients were inside the nine-story hospital. gurneys, wheelchairs, tossed hundreds of yards away. x-rays, medical rec

that's downtown joplin. that's the city of joplin. there are -- literally,there are suburbs of the city making the entire population of the metro area, as we'll call, it 150,000 people. there are people hurt in this. this was a dangerous, deadly, fatal, and as we know, it is still on the ground. as it moves east of joplin, on the right-hand side of your screen, there are fewer people living there. but to go through a major metropolitan area as it went through tuscaloosa two weeks ago and birmingham, that's when you typically get major casualties. we talk about these tornadoes on the ground all the time. people ask me, why don't they ever hit towns? because there are few towns, few and far between, but when a tornado of this size rolls through a city or a town, the damage escalates, the people injury escalate. have you so many other debris flying in the air and people are injured by debris. people are hurt in the car. if it's in the middle of the plains in a wheat field or cornfield, people can get out of the way. if you're in a city l

, we plan on rebuilding joplin.his is our home. >> reporter: memorial day weekend is no holiday for the people of joplin but for the thousands of volunteers who have come here from across the country, it's the perfect time to help. christina ripka drove here from chicago with her son, james, who saw the devastation on television. >> the first night i've ever cried in probably a couple years or so. >> says "we need to go down, mom, i want to make a difference." >> reporter: so they are cleaning the yards of people they don't even know, one handful at a time. >> what good is sitting in your backyard having a barbecue this weekend when you have people who don't have a backyard or a bed to sleep in tonight. >> reporter: rich blaney and his wife, deedee, brought their chainsaws from their home in montana. they felt they needed to do something. >> we appreciate all the help the government is going to give but there's not enough people in the government to help something like this. everybody has got to pitch in together. >

tonight, direct hit, an american tragedy in joplin. >>> good evening tonight from joplin, missouri where, as we said, some of the strongest people in the country are yet undergoing another punishing storm. more lightning, more wind, on top of that deadly tornado. the single deadliest tornado in more than 60 years. we are here in joplin, 160 miles south of kansas city, where a six-mile path of destruction cuts through the heart of the city. it is a storm so ferocious it actually stripped the bark of the trees. at least 116 lives lost. 2,000 homes and buildings destroyed. and seven people have been rescued. more all the time. the rescue teams are not far from us and they will be working through the night. and we did learn that behind every story of survival is also a story of resilience. one woman told us how they rode out the storm in her closet. are ya'll okay? >> yes. >> reporter: are you really? >> yes, we're alive. >> reporter: what happened when the tornado actually -- >> you could just hear glass breaking and you could just -- it was as if you were standing there in it and just watc

more of the toll here in joplin. the breaking news tonight, the death toll has been increased to 122 now. sure to go higher. when we come back, the pain and emotion for people returning to their homes, and we'll take you on a tour of what was the school behind me. the principal talked to one student who had a parent killed in the tornado. [ female announcer ] there's a new way to let go of some of the annoying symptoms menopause brings. it's one a day menopause formula. the only complete multivitamin with soy isoflavones to help address hot flashes and mild mood changes. one a day menopause formula. should i bundle all my policies with nationwide insurance ? watch this. on one hand, you have your home insurance with one company. and on another hand, you have your auto with another. and on another hand, you have your life with another. huh... but when you bundle them all together with nationwide insurance... ... they all work together perfectly-- and you could save 25%. wow... it's all in the wrists. ♪ nationwide is o

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this is joplin before. this is joplin after. the twister taking a neighborhood street and turning it into a kind of moon scape, unrecognizable. at this hour, here's what we had the biggest tornado here, an ef-5. at least 122 lives lost. 600 injured. 17 pulled from the wreckage and reports of more than 1,000 may be missing, unaccounted for. as we said, a line of tornadoes seems to be moving in tonight. and several of them are touching down in oklahoma. we are there, we're going to show you what that's like tonight, when we check in with our reporter. and our team is spread across the disaster zone. but let's begin right now with the missing and david muir, who heard some pretty stunning stories of survival today. david? >> reporter: you and i have heard the stories of survival in every neighborhood we visited. right down to the 9-year-old boy who knew enough to put on his bike helmet before he dove into the bathtub. but tonight, we are also hearing the stories of the missing. as the storm clouds hover over this battered city, a p

people in joplin are still reeling from the disaster.o begin its recovery and that's where our david mattingly is tonight. david? >> reporter: tuscaloosa's tragedy occurred just a month ago when the tornado touched down here and devastated neighborhood after neighborhood. we came here now to find an abundance of hope in this city, but recovery is moving slowly. one month since a monster tornado killed 41 people here. tuscaloosa, alabama, offers little hope for a quick recovery to the victims of more recent tornadoes in places like joplin, missouri. what's this over here? >> that's my grandson's tent. >> reporter: on the outskirts of tuscaloosa i find gayle harden in a moment of despair. >> today it just hit me that i'm not ever going to be able to go back home again. >> reporter: after living in tents for weeks with her family, almost everything harden had still sits in a massive pile next to the road. letting go of the life she knew has been the hardest thing of all. >> i don't know how to start over with everything because everything's

john's hospital in joplin. it is crippled.re having to evacuate the hospital and set up a mobile triage unit. jaime green with "the wichita eagle" took these pictures of the hospital as she was caught in the middle of this storm. and then our i reporter bethany scutti is at the hospital and is reporting on what's going on there. she said it is devastating. they have never seen anything like it. we had a representative from the american red cross join us just a short time ago saying that they were going to need all the help that they can get. and of course there are calls. they are asking any medical professionals in the area if you can make your way safely to the joplin, missouri area to come and help the people out there. they are also asking for -- there are calls for red cross volunteers to come out and help as well. chad myers, before we went to the break, people are asking for analysis, and they want to hear from the authorities here. they want to hear from you. what is going on that is causing all of this? >> well, don,

that right there is the town of joplin, missouri. right here, joplin, missouri. this is the other side. the wind going away and around at about 135 to 145 miles per hour last night. it was truly the only one. there's a potential in western oklahoma, but tomorrow is the day, tomorrow is the day that we could have significantly more tornadoes. here's why. because there will be warm air at the surface and cold air aloft, like a hot air balloon that rises because you fill it with the gas and the hot air goes up and balloon goes up. there goes the cell. it's a towering cumulus when it begins to rain, it changes because of the rainfall. but as it spins, if it's all by itself, like that one cell was yesterday, in joplin, it can spin a tornado out the bottom. that's what we're going to watch for the risk today and for a better chance for tomorrow. the one in joplin was called an hp, where it's a high precipitation thunderstorm. what that means is that if you were standing right here trying to look at the tornado that is right here, you would never see it because it's wra

live in joplin, randall pinkston. back to you, terrell. >> randall pinkston in joplin, missouri. we appreciate it. thanks so much. as the twister was about to hit joplin on sunday, 20 people took shelter in the cooler of a convenience store. one had a video camera. you can't see much here, but what you hear tells an amazing story of terror and survival. take a listen. f terror and survival. take a listen. >> jesus, jesus! >> praise god. praise god. >> i love everyone. i love everyone, man. >> love you, guys. >> going to be okay. oh. >> i love you. >> jesus, jesus, jesus. heavenly father. >> everyone okay. >> everyone inside that store survived. when they came out, their town looked like a war zone. house after house demolished. lives upended. residents are trying to salvage whatever's left. don teague reports. >> reporter: in the 2500 block of murphy street, everything that once was is gone. >> are you putting these in the truck, mom? >> reporter: for rhonda hall, the house she grew up in, where her father still lived until last night is now a pile of broken wood and memories. >>

in joplin, they're still under threat even while they deal with the loss. like the woman we'll meet tonight. her husband lost his life while protecting her. >>> world stage. president obama's speech to the british parliament and what exactly happened there with the queen. >>> and an outburst in court from the young man accused of shooting gabrielle giffords. the question is, what happens to him now. >>> and making a difference. the men who have already done so much for the country showing up in joplin to do some more. "nightly news" begins now. >>> good evening. tonight, the same weather system that slammed into joplin, missouri, on sunday is not only still churning and active, it has intensified in some places. it's widened, and that means 14 more people have died since we last spoke in tornadoes outside of joplin. this one storm system today meant 45 million americans were at some time today under the threat of severe weather. because we all know by now what the colors mean, the deep red, the purple at the core, here is the radar tonight. the huge cross s

the one that hit joplin, missouri. the deadliest tornado on record, part of the deadliest tornado season in half a century. it came. it stayed on the ground a very long and when it left, it took a large part of joplin with it. >> oh, man! stop the car! >> oh! it's getting big, big, big. >> at least 126 people dead, dozens still missing, the actual number not known. local officials believe upwards of 8,000 structures were damaged or destroyed. for those who survive, the scars will always be with them. nearly two dozen people, including three young men, took cover at a convenience store. inside a walk-in beer cooler. one turned on his iphone as the twister struck. the video is dark, but the audio, the sounds tell a story. >> oh, my god! [ screaming ] >> imagine pushing open the door after that incredible experience. elsewhere in joplin, one couple recorded the snooen their neighborhood moments after the tornado struck. destruction all around them, homes on fire. they called out for the young man's sister and fiance. >> s

john's hospital in joplin. it is crippled. they're having to evacuate the hospital and set up a mobile triage unit. jaime green with "the wichita eagle" took these pictures of the hospital as she was caught in the middle of this storm. and then our i reporter bethany scutti is at the hospital and is reporting on what's going on there. she said it is devastating. they have never seen anything like it. we had a representative from the american red cross join us just a short time ago saying that they were going to need all the help that they can get. and of course there are calls. they are asking any medical professionals in the area if you can make your way safely to the joplin, missouri area to come and help the people out there. they are also asking for -- there are calls for red cross volunteers to come out and help as well. chad myers, before we went to the break, people are asking for analysis, and they want to hear from the authorities here. they want to hear from you. what is going on that is causing all of this? >> well,

appreciate that from joplin, missouri.ssouri as the people are picking up the pieces there and still trying to recover more than 40 people that remain missing. meantime we are also going to tale take you to the nation's capitol. it's a annual right, memorial day weekend paying homage to our fallen heroes, to those missing in action and those missing transitions adapt to changing light so you see your whole day comfortably and conveniently while protecting your eyes from the sun. ask your eyecare professional which transitions lenses are right for you. woman: discover the protection, comfort and convenience of transitions lenses for the entire family at transitions.com/samsclub or visit a sam's club optical today. with listerine® whitening plus restoring rinse. it's the only listerine® that gets teeth two shades whiter and makes tooth enamel two times stronger. get dual-action listerine® whitening rinse. building whiter, stronger teeth. with two children and no way to support them. people told me i wasn't going to do anythi

joplin is located in southwest missouri.uth of kansas city in the four-states region as you see here. witnesses are telling us that the twister was half to three-quarters of a mile wide, if you can imagine that. the city is home to almost 50,000 people, but during the day that population grows to more than a quarter of a million as people come in to work and there are even more people in areas surrounding the city that makes it the fourth-largest metropolitan area in missouri. >> and i understand it was a very populous area where that tornado hit, major businesses in the area as well. >> health care providers are among big ones, suzanne, in joplin, missouri. st. john's regional medical center is 1 of 2 hospitals in this area and st. john's was hit directly by the tornado. city officials are reporting significant damage. cnn affiliate kshb said there were fires throughout the hospital after the tornado hit. >> carl, is this the first the city's been hit by a tornado? >> no, they saw something like this back in the 1970s. in f

debr >> joplin is notay. >> joplin is not the only midwest disaster zone. a tornado hit the heart of minneapolis. more are likely across the heartland today. >>> and good morning, everyone. thanks for being with us. we still don't know just yet the scope of the damage caused by that monster twister that hit joplin, missouri. more than 100 people are feared dead this morning. much of that city is in ruins, shaken to its core. >> that mile-wide tornado packed winds as high as 200 miles an hour. the roof of a hospital was completely blown off and hundreds of windows shattered. >> unbelievable images just coming in to us this morning. joplin was not the only town hit. the tornadoes hit seven states in all. stretching all the way from oklahoma in the canadian border. the coverage begins with john hendren. >> reporter: for much of the midwest spared last month, there was no mercy. >> i have the walls left of my home. mm-hmm. my parents have the walls left of their home. my brother doesn't have a home anymore. >> reporter: a staggering 70 tornadoes raked the lands

jacqui jeras is in joplin for us with more.otional story, obviously, jacqui. >> it's an amazing story of survival and providing a lot of hope for people in this devastated community who so desperately need to hear some good news out of this, and that's that 70-year-old pastor was able to get out of there without a scratch. this was the building you were in? >> yes. >> there's almost nothing left but rubble of father justin monahan's rectory behind st. mary's catholic church where he served for the past 15 years. he survived the tornado by seeking haven in what he had always heard was the safest place, the bathroom. >> i got in the bathtub face down. tried to cover my head. and i heard this noise. and i thought, oh. what is happening? i lay there. i just prayed and said thy will be done. and i decide to wait till the end of the noise and then i opened that door. and everything was blocking it. it was all covered there. >> he wait there had, trapped for nearly an hour after the tornado had passed before his parishioners managed t

this the joplin, missouri, now. look at the storm and the latest on the search for survivors is next. car connection calls the xf, yet an instant classic." with sports car styling and power, plus the refinement and space of a luxury sedan, the jaguar xf is a timeless blend of performance and craftsmanship. see how jaguar outperforms the competition at jaguarperforms.com or visit your local jaguar dealer. >>> rescue efforts going on right now after a monosister tornado hits the heart of joplin, missouri. parts of the town of 55,000 people are unrecognizable. at least 89 people are dead. and just in case you missed it, we take you there. the unforgettable, chilling moments. >> oh my gosh. >> this is what the massive tornado looked like as it was baring down on -- bearing down on joplin, missouri. but listen to this. this is what it sounded like from inside a convenient store where terrified customers rode out the storm jammed inside a dark refrigerated storeroom. we talked to one of those who was crammed inside. >> an

i suspect it will hit joplin or just north of joplin in the next 45 minutes to 60 minutes.ly going to try to find whatever cover they can and let this storm roll through. and that will take about 20 minutes to do that. >> lightning, rain, the whole nine yards? >> lightning, gusty winds, and here's the thing. with all the debris that's on the ground, if you get winds just gusting 30, 40 miles an hour, that alone is going to be a dangerous situation. >> it could fan the fires too. >> and you're just thinking about all those search and rescue crews out there trying to, a, clear debris, but also look for survivors. hopefully it there go through quickly. >> if you listen to us on satellite radio or the crews on the ground, please tell the responders to take cover in about 45 minutes because it's going to be get a little bit hairy. >>> after an all-out manhunt, los angeles police now have a suspect in connection with the brutal attack of a giants fan back on opening day. police say 35-year-old giovanni ramirez is one of two assailants shown in those billboard. he's being held on

from joplin, missouri. for now, back to you. >> we want to get more from the director of emergency management, keith stammer. good morning, mr. stammer. i know you're just getting a sense of the scale. give us a sense of what you're dealing with right now. >> well, honestly, at the moment, it's rather surreal. all of our landmarks are gone. the houses, the road signs, trees. places you know to turn at, it's all gone. >> everything is gone. it's hard to get any bearings. i know that the current death toll is about 89. certainly that will climb. do you have a sense of the number of missing and injured right now? >> no, we really don't. in all honesty, we're still doing search and rescue, going from house to house along that six-mile strip. so we don't know yet. >> and you're in search and rescue. that's likely to continue through the morning. as you have been doing that, there's been some confusion over whether or not the early warning systems worked. we have been hearing from a number of residents they didn'

from joplin, missouri tonight. virtually everywhere you look in this city of 50,000, there is destruction. a massive tornado ripped through here about 6:30 last evening, less than half an hour after the warning sirens went off. as the search for victims goes on, the death toll is at least 116. the tornado's winds reached close to 200 miles per hour, destroying or damaging about 2,000 homes and businesses, and carrying debris as far as 60 miles away. the twister was the most destructive of 68 reported across seven midwest states over the weekend. some of the survivors in joplin in southwest missouri took refuge in a convenience store. >> everybody get down. on the ground. >> smith: this cell phone video shows almost nothing. but tells us everything about what it's like when terror is on your doorstep. there are 18 or 19 people huddled inside this store, no electricity, no way of knowing just how bad it was about to get. people screamed and prayed. >> jesus, jesus. >> smith: and say what they fear could be their last

the one that hit joplin, missouri.he deadliest tornado on record, part of the deadliest tornado season in half a century. it came, it stayed on the ground a very long time, and when it left, it took a large part of joplin with it. >> oh, man! >> stop the car! >> okay. >> oh, we've got lightning. we need to go back. let's turn around. >> oh, it's getting big, big, big. >> that's huge! >> for those who survived, the scars will always be them. nearly two dozen people, including three young men, took cover in a convenience store in a walk-in beer cooler. one turned on his camera as the tornado struck. the video is dark, but the sound tells a story. >> oh! [ wind blowing ] >> oh, my god! >> jesus, jesus! >> imagine pushing open the door after that incredible experience. elsewhere in joplin, one couple recorded the scene in their neighborhood moments after the tornado struck. destruction all around them, homes on fire. they called out for the young man's sister and her fiance. >> sarah! sarah! mike! >> of course, there's no

holmes is in joplin.rd more than one story with that. >> reporter: i have a doosy to share with you. we have the doctor iscara with us. you were describing to me what you were doing. you had several family members in the house but you came to this particular area. tell me what you did? >> we were watching weather channel. when it flickered, we already had the crawl space door open, because this is where we would come when there is a tornado but when i heard the tv flicker, the lights went off, i actually fell into it and i could hear the wind swirling and our garage door was like paper being flopped in the air. i was scared i was going to be sucked out. so i was trying to move deeper and deeper. >> you were the only one, too. you were the only family member that made it down here. the rest found other hides areas. >> my daughter and my brother didn't even make it here. they hid in a closet under the stairs. >> and dr. escar, i have to let you see this. you talk about it was dark and scary and loud and she