News

CARNEY, Okla. (AP) — With power out and the threat of more bad weather on the way, first responders in Lincoln County say they'll use police and fire sirens to warn residents of severe weather.

Gov. Mary Fallin is touring storm damage in Carney, where four people were injured and several homes were damaged in Sunday's severe weather. The governor expressed concerns that residents wouldn't know of incoming severe weather because of the power outage.

CARNEY, Okla. (AP) — Oklahoma officials say more than three dozen people were hurt when tornadoes hit the state.

The director of the state's Emergency Management agency said during a tour at tornado-stricken Carney in Lincoln County on Monday that 39 people were injured during Sunday afternoon's storms. The tally includes those who sought treatment from a medical professional, not those who may have suffered bumps, bruises and cuts who did not seek medical attention.

Two people were killed in the Shawnee area.

The sun provides less than one percent of American electricity.  But there is a solar surge underway and the number of installations grew 75% in 2012.  Wind power is also on the upswing and it is happening in places you might not expect. 

SHAWNEE, Okla. (AP) — Gov. Mary Fallin is touring the areas hit hard by tornadoes Sunday.

The governor visited Carney  and then traveled to the Shawnee area. The governor met with victims from the Steelman Estates Mobile Home Park in Shawnee, where two people were killed.

Twenty-one people were also injured after severe weather raked the state.

The National Weather Service is forecasting more of the same for the area — including Oklahoma City and Tulsa — Monday afternoon and evening. Forecasters say baseball-sized hail and tornadoes are possible.

SHAWNEE, Okla. (AP) — Officials say drivers should expect delays on Interstate 40 in Shawnee as crews continue to clean up storm debris.

Westbound Interstate 40 was closed Sunday night at U.S. 177 after storms ripped through the area. U.S. 177 was also shut down because of vehicle accidents caused by the severe weather.

The Oklahoma Department of Transportation says northbound U.S. 177 at I-40 was reopened as of 7 a.m. Monday. Westbound traffic on I-40 is narrowed to one lane, but all lanes are expected to reopen later Monday morning.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Supporters of a plan to permit some grocery stores in Oklahoma's most populous counties to sell wine plan to launch a new petition drive to put the proposal to a statewide vote.

The plan is promoted by the advocacy group Oklahomans for Modern Laws. The group's attorney, former Secretary of State Glenn Coffee, says it plans to resubmit the proposal to voters this summer about a year after it was withdrawn following a Supreme Court challenge.

EDMOND, Okla. (AP) — A tornado kicked up debris in an Oklahoma City suburb and threatened a number of tourist attractions along historic Route 66 before growing into a larger storm that rolled across central Oklahoma.

Television footage Sunday showed a tornado at Edmond. The storm threatened a novelty soda-pop store and a historic barn in the small town of Arcadia, and then grew into a larger storm as it moved northeastward a few miles north of the Turner Turnpike between Oklahoma City and Tulsa.

SHAWNEE, Okla. (AP) — Authorities say a tornado that severely damaged a mobile home park southeast of Oklahoma City killed a 79-year-old man whose body was found in an open area of the neighborhood.

Pottawatomie County Sheriff Mike Booth also said that six people who lived in the mobile home park were injured. Between 30 and 35 homes had significant damage, and number of frame homes in the neighborhood also sustained damage.

The storms were part of a severe weather outbreak that stretched from Texas to Minnesota. Twisters were also reported Sunday in Iowa and Kansas.

Topping the local news:

• Tornadoes rake the state. One person is killed.
• PSO's Regional Haze plan to be debated before the DEQ today.
• Lawmakers could end the state legislative session this week.

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) — The top executive at Little Rock-based Dillard's Inc. says shareholders may be in for bigger dividends or the company may buy back shares.

The Little Rock-based department store chain held its annual meeting Saturday at its headquarters and discussed its recent favorable results.

Dillard's Chief Executive Officer William Dillard II told shareholders that if the company has more cash in the near term than is necessary to cover operating expenses, the company may repurchase shares or boost dividends.