Smashed Midwest Faces 2nd Round of Tornadoes

Even as rescue crews continue to search for survivors in devastated Joplin, Missouri, residents of the Midwest must steel themselves for more severe weather to come. Weather forecasters say the area could see a repeat of the April tornadoes that killed more than 300 people in the South over a period of three days. A large tornado outbreak could hit the Midwest today, with bad weather reaching the East Coast by the end of the week. "This is a very serious situation brewing," one expert tells the AP.

Thousands of homes and hundreds of businesses in Joplin, including a Home Depot and a Walmart, were leveled by Sunday night’s twister, and though the death toll remains at 116, one expert says that “clearly, it’s on its way up.” More than 50 tornadoes were reported in seven Midwest states this weekend, but Missouri was the hardest hit. The Joplin tornado was particularly powerful because it was a “multi-vortex,” with two or more cyclones within the larger funnel cloud, the Washington Post reports. From London, President Obama announced plans to visit Missouri this weekend. Click for more, including pictures and video of the disaster. (More Joplin tornado stories.)