Cleanup begins after US Midwest storms killed six
State Journal
May 11, 2009
St Louis (USA) (AP): Residents of the Midwest cleared away wreckage following a wave of powerful storms that splintered homes, knocked out power to thousands and killed six people.
Hundreds of homes and businesses were damaged or destroyed on Friday in Kansas, Illinois, Kentucky and Missouri and 150,000 Missouri utility customers lost power. Missouri Governor Jay Nixon declared a state of emergency.
In southern Illinois, more than 56,200 customers of the utility Ameren still had no electricity late saturday, the company said. Illinois Governor Pat Quinn on Saturday declared three southern counties disaster areas.
Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear declared an emergency in central and south-eastern sections of his state yesterday, and West Virginia Gov Joe Manchin made the same declaration for six counties in that state.
Trees were down and windows were broken on the campus of Southern Illinois University's Carbondale campus, but the school said weekend commencement ceremonies would go on scheduled. Friday's graduation ceremonies were canceled.
Two people were killed near Poplar Bluff, Montana, when wind knocked a tree onto their sport utility vehicle. In Missouri's Dallas County, a man in his 70s had a fatal heart attack after he and his wife were sucked from their home by a tornado and thrown into a field 30 meters away, said county emergency management director Larry Highfill.
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