Joplin tornado official death toll rises to 151

Zygomycosis fungal infection kills more  people injured in Joplin tornado

An infectious diseases physician at Freeman Health System in Joplin says at least nine patients contracted the infection following the injuries they suffered in Joplin tornado, and of those three or four died from  zygomycosis, directly or indirectly.

Some of the 1,000 or so people who were injured by the massive EF-5 tornado contracted the rare but often fatal fungal infection from soil or plant matter traces carried by the twister debris that penetrated their skin.

A supercell thunderstorm tracked from extreme southeast Kansas into far southwest Missouri (NWS Springfield, County Warning Area) late Sunday afternoon and evening (May 22nd).  This storm produced an EF-5 tornado over Joplin, Missouri resulting in devastating damage. This storm generated other tornadoes and wind damage along its path as it moved southeast across far southwest Missouri.  Spotty wind damage also occurred across the remainder of far southern Missouri as the storms moved east.  Additionally, these storms produced flash flooding across far southwest Missouri.  Image and caption: National Weather Service (NWS)

zygomycosis rhizopus

ygomycosis caused by Mucor pusillus

This slide describes the histopathologic changes seen in a heart valve due to zygomycosis caused by Mucor pusillus.CDC. Image ID 4233

This patient presented with a case of a periorbital fungal infection known as mucormycosis, or phycomycosis.Mucormycosis is a dangerous fungal infection usually occurring in the immunocompromised patient, affecting the regions of the eye, nose, and through its growth and destruction of the periorbital tissues, it will eventually invade the brain cavity. Source CDC (1960)- image ID 2831. Click images to enlarge.

Related Links

• Tornado Dead to Haunt Missouri Officials
• Tornado Alley Maps for June
• Joplin Tornado Death Toll Mounting
• Joplin Tornado – May 28 Update
• Joplin Tornado – Update May 26
• One Large Tornado Patch
• Major tornado outbreak forecast for southern Plains on Wednesday

• Tornado Death Toll in Joplin Reaches 116
• Tornado Death Toll Rises to 89 in Joplin, Missouri
• 2011 Atlantic Hurricane Season: AAA
• Mega Tornadoes to Bombard U-S Tornado Alley

2011 Disasters

• 2011 Disaster Calendar – June
• 2011 Much More Disastrous
• 2010 Disasters [Includes Links to 2010 Disaster Calendar]
• Mega Disasters: 2011 SIX TIMES MORE DISASTROUS THAN 2010
• 2011 Disaster Calendar

Tornado Dead to Haunt Missouri Officials

Joplin Tornado: Deadliest in Recorded History

Number of the missing is changing faster than Missouri officials can count

29 Missing in Joplin: Missouri officials rapidly reduce number of people unaccounted for after the deadly tornado!  

Other Official Stats

• Sets of remains, including partial remains: 146 (Source: City Manager Mark Rohr quoting the Missouri Highway Patrol)
• Missing in Joplin: 29  (down from 43 only  8 hours earlier, and from 1,500 six days earlier.)
• No. of victims who have been positively identified: 101 (as of 3:00pm local time on Monday)
• No. of school children killed in the tornado: 7  (from Joplin School District)
• Number of teenage victims:  11 under the age of 18
• About 5,000 people have so far registered with the FEMA seeking housing.

City officials said about 8,000 houses and apartment buildings were destroyed by the EF-5 tornado that struck Joplin on May 22, 2010.

Rotation tracks over Joplin, Missouri

Source: NSSL

Related Links

• Joplin Tornado Death Toll Mounting
• Joplin Tornado – May 28 Update
• Severe Weather Update – May 27
• One Large Tornado Patch
• Major tornado outbreak forecast for southern Plains on Wednesday

• Tornado Death Toll in Joplin Reaches 116
• Tornado Death Toll Rises to 89 in Joplin, Missouri
• 2011 Atlantic Hurricane Season: AAA
• Mega Tornadoes to Bombard U-S Tornado Alley

2011 Disasters

• 2011 Much More Disastrous
• 2010 Disasters [Includes Links to 2010 Disaster Calendar]
• Mega Disasters: 2011 SIX TIMES MORE DISASTROUS THAN 2010
• 2011 Disaster Calendar

Joplin Tornado Death Toll Mounting

State Authorities Have Trouble Counting?

Missouri state officials said they had positively identified 142 sets of human remains Saturday.

But that was early Saturday. Just a few hours later they changed their minds and revised the figure down to 139,  a report said.

A week has now passed since the deadly EF-5 tornado struck Joplin, Missouri, destroying much of the city.

Other Details

• The youngest victim:  aged 1
• The eldest victim:  92
• Total of 73 deceased persons from the Joplin tornado have been identified and their next-of-kin notified
• Still missing: 100 (down from 1,500), 9 victims confirmed deceased as reported by family.
• Names of deceased persons are listed HERE
• Will Norton: Sadly confirmed dead.
• Joplin Tornado is probably the deadliest single tornado in the US history.

The 25 Deadliest U.S. Tornadoes

Data Source: Storm Prediction Center. Tabulation: FIRE-EARTH. *Joplin tornado death toll is preliminary, many are still missing.
NOTES:
1. “Having happened before the era of comprehensive damage surveys, some of these events may have been composed of multiple tornadoes along a damage path. Death counts for events in the 1800s and early 1900s should be treated as estimates since recordkeeping of tornado deaths was erratic back then.” SPC said on its website.
2. Modern recordkeeping did NOT began until 1950.

Deadliest Tornado Years in US History
(Official NOAA-NWS Record: 1950 – present; Research by Grazulis: 1875-1949)
Year     Fatalities
1925     794
1936     552
1917     551
1927     540
1896     537
2011   519  (139  in Joplin, as of Saturday May 28, 2011)
1953     519
1920     499
1908     477
1909     404
1932     394
1942     384
1924     376
1974     366
1933     362
*Joplin information is preliminary.

Other Tornado Stats [Missourificated?]

• On May 24, 2011, deadly tornadoes claimed 18 lives in Oklahoma (10), Kansas (2), and Arkansas (6).
• On May 26, 2011, deadly storms/tornadoes killed 3 people in Atlanta, Georgia.
• The Marion County long-track EF5 of 27 April 2011 killed 78 people.
• So far an estimated 323 tornadoes have occurred during May 2011 (3-year average: 322; decadal average: 298).
• YTD total: 1,364 tornadoes (full year decadal average: 1,274).
• April 2011 set a new record for the month with 875 tornadoes.
• NWS records indicate 361 people were killed in April 2011, including 321 during the April 25-28 tornado outbreak, NOAA said.

Related Links

• Joplin Tornado – May 28 Update
• Severe Weather Update – May 27
• One Large Tornado Patch
• Major tornado outbreak forecast for southern Plains on Wednesday

• Tornado Death Toll in Joplin Reaches 116
• Tornado Death Toll Rises to 89 in Joplin, Missouri
• 2011 Atlantic Hurricane Season: AAA
• Mega Tornadoes to Bombard U-S Tornado Alley

2011 Disasters

• 2011 Much More Disastrous
• 2010 Disasters [Includes Links to 2010 Disaster Calendar]
• Mega Disasters: 2011 SIX TIMES MORE DISASTROUS THAN 2010
• 2011 Disaster Calendar