Oklahoma Gov. Fallin: "It's been a very trying couple of weeks"
(CBS News) It's been "a very trying couple of weeks" for Oklahoma following a second round of deadly storms to hit the state in less than two weeks, Gov. Mary Fallin, R-Okla., said Sunday on "Face the Nation." But, she added, it's also been a chance to showcase "that Oklahoma-strong resiliency, compassion, neighbor-helping-neighbor."
"We're still pulling up from our boot straps and were getting busy doing what we need to do, just taking care of our people," Fallin said. But after the May 20 tornado that killed 24 and devastated the Oklahoma City suburb of Moore, the Sooner State was "surprised," she continued, when another violent twister formed Friday and headed toward the capital city, killing at least nine and injuring many more.
"We knew the weather was going to be bad, but to think that this could happen two weeks in a row is quite remarkable," she said. "We had loss of life again, we know at least nine people. We're hoping that there's not going to be more but there are some people that are missing and we're still doing some rescuing and searching for that. But it's a lot of cleanup to be done around Oklahoma."
Full coverage of the Oklahoma tornado disasterSome Oklahomans who opted to flee from the storms were struck by the tornadoes on the I-40. Fallin said it "could have been much, much worse" considering how many vehicles clogged the highway as people "were just trying to leave their community and maybe go somewhere else that might be safer."
Moore, meantime, is "starting to come back to life," Fallin said, citing businesses that have reopened and progress in debris-removal.
"I just want people in America to know that Oklahoma is a great place to live, you know, just like states have wildfires in California or earthquakes, they may have tornadoes in other areas of the country," she said. "I hope they are able to come back and see us when we have one of our up moments. We are very strong, and we are going to come back strong."
