Tornado Hits Moore,Oklahoma,USA -Monday May 20,2013

Rescuers went building to building in search of victims and survivors picked through the rubble of their shattered homes on Tuesday, a day after a massive tornado tore through the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore

After a long day of searching - emergency crews lifted broken doors, moved sections of shattered walls and tossed aside bricks looking for survivors as cadaver dogs sniffed through the rubble.

The National Guard, firefighters from more than a dozen fire departments and rescuers from other states were involved in the search-and-rescue effort in Moore, a town of 55,000 people.

The death toll of 24 was lower than initially feared, but nine children were among the dead, including seven who died at Plaza Towers Elementary School, which took a direct hit on Monday in the deadliest tornado to strike the United States in two years

Moore Mayor Glenn Lewis said he believed all the dead and missing had been accounted for.

Shelters were opened for families who lost their homes, and universities offered to house people.

President Barack Obama declared a major disaster in Oklahoma, ordering federal aid to supplement state and local efforts.
"The people of Moore should know that their country will remain on the ground, there for them, beside them, as long as it takes," President Barack Obama said