Tagged: Joplin tornado

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon has asked the federal government to pay the full cost of repairing public buildings and infrastructure damaged by recent floods and tornadoes.

Nixon said Friday that his request is based on the historic devastation caused by a tornado that killed at least 138 people in Joplin and flooding that swamped hundreds of thousands of acres in southeast Missouri.

Missouri officials say the death toll from the massive May 22 Joplin tornado has risen to 138 people.

The state Department of Public Safety announced the increase from 134 to 138 on Thursday after confirming that four more people died in hospitals of injuries suffered in deadliest single U.S. tornado since 1950.

More than 8,000 homes and apartments, and more than 500 commercial properties, were damaged or destroyed when the twister ripped through more than six miles of the southwest Missouri town.

Mo. Officials Preparing for More Flooding

Mother Nature is challenging Missourians again. With flooding likely along the Missouri River, Gov. Jay Nixon and other officials are heading to St. Joseph today to discuss preparations.

Seasonal flooding along the Missouri is being worsened this year as the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers releases historic amounts of water from upstream dams in the Dakotas. Officials in northwestern Missouri's Atchison and Holt counties have already put residents in flood-prone areas on alert to evacuate as needed.