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At least 13 killed as tornadoes, storms rip through Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas

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At least 13 killed as tornadoes, storms rip through Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas


At least 13 people were killed and dozens more injured as tornado-spawning thunderstorms rampaged across Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas on Saturday.

Seven people died in Cooke County, Texas, including two children ages 2 and 5, authorities said. A tornado tore through a mobile home park in the county.

“It’s just a trail of debris left. The devastation is pretty severe,” Cooke County Sheriff Ray Sappington told The Associated Press.

Dozens of people sheltered at a highway truck stop in the small town of Valley View as the storm rolled through the largely rural county north of Dallas near the Oklahoma state border. They escaped without injuries, Sappington said.

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In Oklahoma, two people died in Mayes County, about 40 miles east of Tulsa, according to the county’s emergency management office. The details of their deaths were not reported.

AP Photo

Damage is seen at a truck stop the morning after a tornado rolled through Sunday in Valley View, Texas.

And in northern Arkansas, one person was killed in Benton County and another person died in Boone County, officials said. Emergency crews were still responding to calls for help and authorities warned the death toll — up to four across the state — might rise.

“We are still on search and rescue right now,” Boone County communications director Melody Kwok told The Associated Press. “This is a very active situation.”

At least 11 people killed as powerful storms rip through Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas

AP Photo

A Volkswagen SUV is seen in a ditch near a Shell gas station after a suspected tornado passed through the area Saturday night in Valley View, Texas.

The storms covered a massive swath of Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas, with homes suffering damage as far south as the Dallas suburbs and as far north as Tulsa, a nearly 250-mile span. Cars and tractor-trailers were overturned, and mobile homes were upended.

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As the storms moved east into Sunday afternoon nearly 200,000 people were without power across Missouri and Arkansas, while 180,000 homes and businesses were in the dark in Kentucky, according to Poweroutage.us.

The start of the Indianapolis 500 was delayed for hours due to the storms, and authorities ordered the evacuation of the massive Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

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Oklahoma

Putnam City West moves to virtual learning after student incident

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Putnam City West moves to virtual learning after student incident


PUTNAM CITY, Okla. –

Putnam City West High School will shift to virtual learning on Tuesday after an incident involving two students prompted an investigation by the district and Oklahoma City police, according to Putnam City Schools.

District officials said administrators were alerted near the end of the school day Monday to an altercation involving two students in the school’s arena area.

Officials said the students left campus, and the case was turned over to Putnam City Campus Police and the Oklahoma City Police Department for investigation.

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District officials said no students or staff were harmed and there is no ongoing safety threat related to the incident.

What we know

Putnam City West sent the following email to all families and staff at the school:

All PCW students and staff will transition to virtual learning for Tuesday, April 21st.

Today, an isolated serious incident involving two students occurred on school grounds. Near the end of the school day, administrators were alerted to an altercation between two students in the arena area. The individuals involved quickly left campus, prompting an initial fact-finding response by school administrators before the matter was turned over to Putnam City Campus Police and the Oklahoma City Police Department for further investigation. Because this is an active investigation involving students, no further information will be released at this time.

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We understand this information may be concerning to students, staff, and families. Please know we are committed to maintaining a safe, secure, and positive learning environment for all students. At Putnam City Schools, student and staff safety remains our highest priority. Therefore, out of an abundance of caution and to allow for a thorough investigation, all PCW students and staff will transition to virtual learning for Tuesday, April 21st. Students will need to check Google Classroom for updates from teachers.

Thank you for your understanding and continued support of PC West.

Putnam City Schools

All students and staff at Putnam City West will transition to virtual learning on Tuesday, April 21, while investigators continue their work, according to the district.

Students were told to check Google Classroom for instructions from teachers.

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The district said it is withholding additional details because the case involves students and remains under investigation.

School officials have not said what triggered the incident or whether any arrests have been made.

This is a developing story. Updates will be added as more information becomes available.





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Oklahoma launches program letting adults use past credits, test scores to earn diplomas

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Oklahoma launches program letting adults use past credits, test scores to earn diplomas


A new program in Oklahoma is giving adults another way to finish high school by allowing them to use past credits and test scores to earn a diploma, an option officials say could help thousands of people and strengthen the state’s workforce.

For years, adults in Oklahoma who did not finish high school largely had one main option: earning a GED. Now, Oklahoma CareerTech is rolling out the Career Readiness Diploma, a pathway designed to build on what students have already completed rather than requiring them to start over.

“So in Oklahoma right now, if you look at the demographics, we have about 279,000 people in our state without a high school diploma. So it’s almost 10% of our population doesn’t have a high school diploma,” said Lance Allee, an adult education and family literacy specialist with Oklahoma CareerTech.

Allee said the program allows adults to apply previously earned high school credit and combine different assessment scores into a single record to qualify for a diploma.

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“It allows the student to use previously earned high school credit. So, it’s kind of like a portfolio where you can take multiple assessment scores and put them into one portfolio to get your high school diploma,” Allee said.

The program is open to adults 21 and older. In some cases, officials said, participants can finish in just weeks, depending on how many credits they already have.

CareerTech officials say the program is also aimed at improving job prospects for individuals while helping Oklahoma remain competitive when attracting employers.

“When you’re a company and you’re looking at moving into Oklahoma, you look at the demographics and say, is there a workforce there that we can employ? And you say, well, about 10% of the population doesn’t have a diploma, they may start looking at states that surround us. So, we definitely want to get as many diplomas out there as we can,” Allee said.

The program started issuing diplomas in recent weeks, and officials said dozens more people are already in the process. For more information or to sign up click here.

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Cord Rager’s Return, Consistent Hitting Earns Oklahoma First SEC Sweep of Missouri

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Cord Rager’s Return, Consistent Hitting Earns Oklahoma First SEC Sweep of Missouri


NORMAN — Cord Rager’s return comes at a pivotal time for Skip Johnson’s Oklahoma Sooners. Not only do they get their day three starter back in time for big road matchups against Auburn and Arkansas on the horizon, but the Sooners pitching strength, their rotational depth, is primed and ready for the test.

The freshman lefty finished with eight strikeouts and only gave up one hit in only 65 pitches before his day ended in the sixth.

No. 14 Oklahoma earn its first conference sweep of the season, defeating Missouri 8-4. It was OU’s fourth conference series win.

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Oklahoma (27-12, 10-8) put their best foot forward as they turn the page to the meat of their schedule where they will do battle against No. 13, No. 20 and No. 16 over the next three weeks — two of those series’ on the road.

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Camden Johnson runs home against Missouri. | Carson Field / Sooners On SI

Four runs in five hits in the second got things rolling for the Sooners.

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Camden Johnson continued his brilliant play of late with a triple in the second. This came after a Brenden Brock solo home run to put OU up 1-0. Deiten LaChance grounded out to short but scored Johnson. Dasan Harris and and Nolan Stevens each found home before the inning ended.


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OU found fortune from the plate again in the fourth. Four runs off of four hits highlighted by a three-run home run by Johnson put Oklahoma up 8-0. It was Johnson’s seventh home run of the season, second on the team behind Brock’s nine.

Trent Collier got the nod in the sixth to relieve Rager.

In the seventh, Missouri finally got on the board for the first time since the ninth inning of Friday night’s Sooner victory. Cam Durnin hit a solo shot — his fourht of the season — to make the score 8-1 in favor of the home team.

The Tigers got their third hit of the game shortly after. From there, Collier’s short day was done. Gavyn Jones came on to relieve

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Dasan Harris runs home to score against Missouri. | Carson Field / Sooners On SI

LaChance missed a home run by inches when Tiger center fielder Kaden Peer made a leaping catch, jumping into the fence.

In the eighth, the Tigers continued to chip away. With bases loaded, Blaze Ward hit a basehit to score two Missouri base runners. OU led 8-3 heading into the final inning.

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Harris led the Sooners with three hits. His day was accented by an RBI, stolen base and a run.

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Oklahoma will travel to Auburn to take on the No. 13 Tigers for a three game series starting on Friday. Before that, they will host Oral Roberts for a midweek game at Kimrey Family Stadium in Norman. The Sooners won 4-0 against ORU earlier this season.

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