DISASTERS

AP PHOTOS: Storms cause damage across Tornado Alley, with more expected this weekend

Associated Press
Published | Updated

Mismatched shoes are lined up after being salvaged from a ruined recreational vehicle in Oklahoma City, Thursday, May 7, 2015. Gov. Mary Fallin has declared a state of emergency in 12 Oklahoma counties hit by tornadoes, severe storms, straight-line winds and flooding on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki) (The Associated Press)

A hotel damaged in the storm of May 6 is pictured in Oklahoma City, Thursday, May 7, 2015. Authorities are assessing the damage from spring storms that spawned more than a dozen suspected tornadoes in the southern Plains, destroying dozens of homes, causing flooding and forcing the evacuation of Oklahoma City's main airport. At least 12 people were injured but there were no reports of deaths. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki) (The Associated Press)

Debris scatters the parking lot of The Norman Hotel in Norman, Okla., Wednesday, May 6, 2015. A tornado grazed Oklahoma City and its suburbs Wednesday, threatening rush hour drivers and prompting schools to hold children in safe rooms until the danger passed. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki) (The Associated Press)

Many residents across the southern Plains were left to riffle through their rubble after violent weather struck Tornado Alley.

Wednesday's storms included more than four dozen reported tornadoes, causing damage in Oklahoma, Texas, Nebraska and Kansas. Most twisters remained in rural areas, but a pair of storms struck the Oklahoma City area three hours apart. Heavy rains accompanying the twisters swamped the region, too, and one woman drowned after a storm shelter filled with water. Several people were injured.

The storms ripped apart homes, stripped siding and roofs from buildings and overturned cars.

Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin declared a state of emergency for a dozen hard-hit counties.

Forecasters say more bad weather is possible in the same area Friday and Saturday. The likelihood of another round of storms so soon left some wondering whether they should wait to start cleaning up.