6 still missing, 10 children killed in Moore, OK tornado

Posted: May 22, 2013 8:58 AM Updated: May 22, 2013 11:56 AM

By Cecelia Hanley - email

Plaza Towers Elementary school took a direct hit from the EF-5 tornado that hit Moore, OK, on May 20. (Source: CNN)

 

 

(RNN) – Of the 24 killed in the EF-5 tornado that decimated Moore, OK, 10 are children - two of which are infants, according to a release by the Oklahoma City Medical Examiner's Office.

All the children have been identified. The ME's office is waiting to release the names of eight other people – with one yet to be positively identified – until next of kin can be notified.

However, an emergency management official says that six adults are still missing. Albert Ashwood, director of the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management, tells the Associated Press it is unknown if the missing could still be in the rubble or have walked away from their properties.

The ages of those killed rage in age from 4 months old to 65. Case Futrell, 4 months old, and 7-month-old Sydnee Vargyas died of blunt force trauma to the head. The other children ranged in age from 4 to 9 years old.

The news release from the medical examiner does not say if the children killed were found Plaza Towers Elementary school, which took a direct hit.

Of the other eight children, six suffocated and two died from traumatic injuries.

Many died from "blunt force injuries" around the head or torso.

About 10,000 people and 12,000 to 13,000 homes were affected by the tornado that cut across 17 miles of Oklahoma for 40 minutes, and ranged from half-mile to two miles wide. Winds were at least 200 mph.

The financial cost of the damage could exceed $2 billion, according to the Oklahoma Insurance Department.

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