Picher Death Toll At Seven

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The death toll in Picher is at seven after yesterday’s outbreak oftornadoes, the deadliest outbreak of tornadoes in Oklahoma since 1999. Theseven dead includes an infant.

The infant died at a Tulsa hospital. Identifying those killed could take upto a week, according toofficials.Several Picher residents told authorities they had no warning before thetornado, which destroyed the south end of the city.

There are many people missing, but authorities could not give an estimategiven the extent of the damage. Crews and search dogs are going through thetown today.

At least 150 people — from scratches to more serious problems — were injuredin the Picher tornado, said Michelann Ooten, a spokeswoman for the stateEmergency Management Department.

Gov. Brad Henry declared a state of emergency late Saturday. He is expectedto tour the area this afternoon.

There will be official press conferences this afternoon. We will cover thoseand provide video from them. Also, there are photo galleries from TheOklahoman’s Matthew Strasen online at NewsOK.com. NewsOK.tv’s TannerHerriott is in Picher today as well and will be filing more video from thescene.