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CWS situation report: plain states tornadoes

May 6, 2007

A weekend storm system brought some of the most powerful tornadoes the Midwest has seen in eight years, killing at least 10 people Friday and Saturday. Greensburg, Kan. sustained the most concentrated damage from the storm, where eight people were killed Friday night. Greensburg Town Administrator Steve Hewitt estimates 90 percent of the town of 1,500 is destroyed. Search and rescue teams worked throughout the weekend to find survivors in the rubble.

A second storm killed two other people in Kansas last night. Though damage outside Greensburg was minimal, the National Weather Service estimates at least 20 tornadoes originated from Friday night's weather system.

President Bush declared the Greensburg area of Kiowa County, Kan., a disaster area. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has made individual and public assistance available, including the use of travel trailers for emergency housing.

CWS RESPONSE: Church World Service Disaster Response and Recovery Liaison Cherri Baer will deploy to Greensburg, Kan. as soon as possible. CWS also stands ready to provide material resources at the request of disaster response partners and denominations. As tornado warnings are in place for parts of Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma and Missouri Sunday night, CWS will continue to monitor this active weather pattern for potential responses.

Contributions to support these efforts may be made by credit card online, or by calling: 800-297-1516, ext. 222.

Media Contact:
Lesley Crosson, CWS/New York, 212-870-2676;
Jan Dragin, 781-925-1526;

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