Heartache

Tornado Levels Boy Scout Camp In Iowa

Two people are dead in northern Kansas after tornadoes cut a diagonal path across the state Wednesday night, authorities said.

A spokeswoman for the Kansas Adjutant General's Department said one victim was found in a yard in the town of Chapman. The other was found outside a mobile home in the Jackson County town of Soldier.

The most extensive damage from the tornado outbreak appears to be in Chapman.
A half-mile-wide tornado tore through the town, destroying more than 60 homes and numerous businesses. All three schools were damaged.

A tornado also hit the campus of Kansas State University in Manhattan, damaging buildings and tossing cars.

No injuries were reported there.

In Blencoe, Iowa, a tornado that ripped through a Boy Scout camp in western Iowa added to the weather crisis in a state hit by flooding in the east.

At least four people were killed Wednesday evening when the powerful twister struck the 1,800-acre camp where 93 boys and 25 staff members were attending a weeklong leadership training camp.

More than 40 people were hurt.

A Boy Scout official said the twister destroyed all the buildings and tents and most of the trees. Rescuers dug through piles of debris to reach trapped victims, some of them sheltering under tables.

A rescue official said everyone at the camp has been accounted for.
The National Weather Service issued two warnings minutes before the tornado hit, but it's not clear if the camp had sirens.

Tornadoes also touched down in southern Minnesota and eastern Nebraska.

Bubba is scheduled to to to "Leadership training" next week in our state. My heart is broken for the families of these 'best of the best' boy scouts. Dear Lord please be with their families during this very difficult time.