Katy Linnenbrink, with Missouri's state emergency management agency, joins AccuWeather to discuss how the state is responding to devastation left behind by severe storms.
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00:00Tragically, Missouri was hit the hardest last night with deadly tornadoes, and Katie Linenbrink
00:06is a public information officer for Missouri State Emergency Management Agency. Katie,
00:10thanks so much for joining us. I know that this was a horrible night. Nasty storms into the St.
00:15Louis metro, but even a more vicious storm near the Arkansas line. So what is the latest? We know
00:21there have been fatalities and property damage. Yeah, yeah. So right now our initial reports are
00:27showing there were potentially up to 19 tornadoes with varying strengths and intensities across 25
00:34counties in Missouri. So of course the National Weather Service will be verifying that over the
00:39coming days. We're working with our state and local partners to support response efforts.
00:44Our regional coordinators are in the field surveying and assessing damage as we prepare
00:49for a potential federal disaster declaration. At this time, sadly, the Missouri State Highway
00:55Patrol has confirmed 11 fatalities and will be sharing more information as it's verified.
01:02Okay, where are your teams deploying to help and what kinds of assistance is needed right now?
01:09Yeah, so like I said, widespread damage in Missouri. Some of the areas that were hit
01:14hardest include, you know, Rolla and Phelps County, Butler County, Wayne County. So we've got
01:21people kind of spread out everywhere. And right now, you know, our main concern is,
01:26you know, life safety and allowing our emergency crews and responders room to work and clear
01:34debris and restore power. With power outages and more danger, what tips do you have for residents
01:40to stay safe? Again, the storms are exiting Missouri, but sometimes people get hurt right
01:45after the storm with some utility problems and other dangers at play. Yeah, absolutely. There's
01:51a lot of debris out there right now, a lot of power lines down. So we are really urging residents
01:56to avoid impacted areas, stay away from the damage to allow our crews room to work safely.
02:04Treat all downed power lines as live always. If you are out of power and operating a generator,
02:10be sure to operate it outdoors only. Make sure it's well ventilated. Those should be used for
02:16emergency standby power only and for short periods of time. So just making sure you're
02:22exercising proper usage for ventilators and staying safe as debris is cleared and cleaned up.
02:30I know it sounds kind of counterintuitive to talk about this right after heavy rain and
02:34thunderstorms, but fire danger is going to escalate again into early next week
02:38in Missouri. Are there any other concerns that you have as people begin the recovery process?
02:44Yeah, absolutely. So we're certainly still monitoring the concern for fire with dry and
02:48windy conditions over these next few days. So we remind citizens to stay vigilant,
02:54avoid any activities that could potentially spark or spread a fire quickly. All right,
03:00Katie Linenbrink with Missouri State's Emergency Management Agency in Jefferson
03:04City. Thanks again. We appreciate your time there, Katie. Thank you.