Tornado Emergency Declared In Oklahoma City

Credit Sue Ogrocki / AP
A woman carries her child through a field near the collapsed Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore, Okla., on Monday A tornado as much as a mile wide with winds up to 200 mph roared through the Oklahoma City suburbs flattening entire neighborhoods, setting buildings on fire and landing a direct blow on an elementary school.
(This post was last updated at 9:02 p.m. ET.)

A massive tornado ripped through the southern suburbs of Oklahoma City, Monday afternoon, killing at least 51 people, according to the state medical examiner's office.

The death toll was expected to rise.

Helicopter images showed large tracts of Moore, Okla., completely leveled by what the National Weather Service says was at least an EF-4 tornado with winds in excess of 166 mph. The tornado stayed on the ground for 40 minutes and traveled 20 miles.

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Health
4:29 pm
Tue March 5, 2013

To Combat 'Superbugs,' Hospitals Boost Disinfection Techniques

Originally published on Tue March 5, 2013 4:45 pm

With the rise in superbug occurrences at hospitals, Audie Cornish talks with Tara Palmore, deputy hospital epidemiologist and infectious disease physician at the National Institutes of Health, about how healthcare facilities are changing practices to help stem the spread of the drug-resistant bacteria.

Animals
4:29 pm
Tue March 5, 2013

'Extinction Looms' For Forest Elephants Due To Poaching

Originally published on Tue March 5, 2013 5:20 pm

Forest elephants in central Africa are being slaughtered in record numbers. The most comprehensive study ever, done over a decade, shows that poaching — mostly for the Asian market for ivory — has put the forest elephant on the brink of extinction. Poaching has overcome laws and treaties to protect the species. The U.S. government and wildlife groups are struggling to slow the killing. A meeting in March of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species will focus on solutions. Audie Cornish talks to Christopher Joyce.

Middle East
4:29 pm
Tue March 5, 2013

Syrian-American Returns To Home Country To Help Train, Arm Rebels

Originally published on Tue March 5, 2013 5:20 pm

Some Syrians living comfortably in the U.S. are understandably wracked with guilt that they can't do more to help their countrymen. Each has his own way of dealing with the situation. But now that the liberated north is easier to reach, they're starting to come back and many of them visiting parts of the country they've never seen before. We profile a Syrian-American gun enthusiast who's doing his part to arm and train the rebels.

Sports
4:29 pm
Tue March 5, 2013

No Obvious Favorites As NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Starts

Originally published on Tue March 5, 2013 5:20 pm

Go on, pick a favorite in this year's NCAA tournament. We dare you. There's more than a dozen legitimate contenders to pick from. And then there's all those potential Cinderella teams. Mike Pesca talks to Audie Cornish about the upcoming NCAA Men's College Basketball tournament, which is as wide open as it has even been.

Television
4:29 pm
Tue March 5, 2013

New Fox Sports Network Hopes To Challenge ESPN's Cable Dominance

Originally published on Tue March 5, 2013 5:20 pm

Rupert Murdoch announced on Tuesday the launch of Fox Sports 1, an all sports cable channel that will compete head to head with ESPN.

Theater
4:29 pm
Tue March 5, 2013

For This Pair Of Clowns, 'Old Hats' Mean New Laughs

Originally published on Tue March 5, 2013 6:14 pm

Twenty years ago, theatrical clowns Bill Irwin and David Shiner collaborated on a Broadway show called Fool Moon — a giddy mixture of slapstick, improv and audience participation that proved such a success that it came back to Broadway for two more runs and toured both the U.S. and Europe. Now Irwin and Shiner have put together a new show called Old Hats, and it's been receiving rave reviews off-Broadway.

Irwin and Shiner's rubber-faced, loose-bodied clowning hasn't gotten easier over two decades.

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Remembrances
4:13 pm
Tue March 5, 2013

Venezuela's Chavez: An Outsized Personality, A Domineering Figure

Originally published on Tue March 5, 2013 5:20 pm

The Two-Way
4:02 pm
Tue March 5, 2013

At 106, Man Finally Gets An Elusive High School Diploma

Fred Butler has done many things in his 106 years, from serving in two military theaters of World War II to helping raise five children. But he had never gone to high school, or earned a diploma — the result of leaving school after the eighth grade to work full-time in a print shop to help support his family.

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Middle East
3:59 pm
Tue March 5, 2013

Kerry: We're Trying To Offer Syrian President A Rational Choice

Originally published on Tue March 5, 2013 5:20 pm

Secretary of State John Kerry is wrapping up his first official overseas trip to Europe and the Middle East. He's shifted U.S. policy on Syria, offering direct assistance to the opposition coalition and non-lethal aid to fighters. He's also offered Egypt's Islamist government $190 million to avert a budget crisis and he's warning Iran that talks can't go on indefinitely.

NPR Story
3:50 pm
Tue March 5, 2013

Posthumous Pardon For Heavyweight Boxer Jack Johnson A Bipartisan Effort

Originally published on Tue March 5, 2013 5:20 pm

Democratic Senators Harry Reid and Mo Cowan have joined Republicans John McCain and Representative Peter King to call for the pardon of former heavyweight boxing champ Jack Johnson. He was the first black fighter to win that title, in 1908. Another win in 1910 sparked race riots nationwide, and his relationships with white women only added to the controversy. He was convicted of taking women across state lines for "immoral purpose." Audie Cornish has more.

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