Twisters tear through Kansas, Missouri

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- A series of tornadoes pummeled Kansas and Missouri on Sunday, killing at least five people as they left a swath of destruction a quarter-mile wide in some places.\nThe tornadoes were part of a large storm system that hit the Midwest, spawning twisters in South Dakota and Nebraska as well.\nCol. Joy Moser, spokeswoman for the Kansas Division of Emergency Management, said his agency had confirmed five deaths, including four in Crawford County in southeast Kansas. He said dozens of homes and buildings were damaged and destroyed around the region.\nCars and trucks were tossed into a ravine full of splintered trees in Kansas City, Kan., and several houses were knocked off their foundations.\nJodee Nirschl, whose house is directly across from the ravine, said windows were blown out and a chunk of the second floor was missing.\n"My daughter's room is gone, but she's OK," Nirschl said, her voice breaking and tears coming to her eyes. "As long as I have my kids and my husband, I'll be OK."\nOfficials at Providence Medical Center in Kansas City, Kan., said they treated 22 people injured by the tornado, but most were released after suffering minor cuts and bruises.\nGov. Kathleen Sebelius declared seven counties disaster areas, and Missouri Gov. Bob Holden said the process was under way to declare disaster areas in his state.\nHolden toured Northmoor, a small town in Platte County, Mo., where between 25 and 30 homes were either damaged or destroyed. The town's city hall and police station also were damaged.\nThe governor said the damage was "the worst I've seen from a tornado in several years."\n"I had to hold on with all my strength," said resident Charles Tholl, who was with his girlfriend and five children when the storm hit. "It was scary. It felt like the house was twirling."\nArmy National Guard Maj. Gen. Greg Gardner, Kansas' director of emergency management, said state officials knew of four tornadoes that touched down in the region.\nThe largest tornado first touched down west of Bonner Springs in Leavenworth County, Kan., around 3:30 p.m., said Lynn Maximuk, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.\nIt moved through Leavenworth and Wyandotte counties and east into Platte and Clay counties in Missouri, doing heavy damage along the way in the northern section of the Kansas City metropolitan area.\nThe tornado reached 500 yards across at its widest, Maximuk said.\nIt finally died out shortly before 6:30 p.m. in Ray County, Mo., northeast of Kansas City, meteorologist Lisa Schmit said.