9 dead after tornadoes, floods strike Oklahoma

• 9 deaths reported in the Oklahoma City area
• Among injured is a meteorologist from The Weather Channel
• Residents%2C rescuers contending with heavy flooding and power outages

Severe flooding was the big issue Saturday as officials began surveying damage from tornadoes that hit the Oklahoma City metro area Friday, killing 9 and injuring more than 100 people.

The storm, the second fatal one to strike the region in 11 days, spawned several tornadoes, toppled cars and left commuters trapped on an interstate highway during Friday's evening rush. Law enforcement officers and Red Cross workers headed to hard-hit areas after dawn to assess the damage.

The storm also brought heavy rain and hail. Floodwaters topped 4 feet in Oklahoma City early Saturday and were expected to rise as flash flooding continued in parts of the state. Across east and central Oklahoma, repeated rounds of thunderstorms have produced between 4 to 7 inches of rain since midnight Saturday.

Some highways were closed because of downed power lines. The Oklahoma Corporation Commission reported more than 91,800 power outages related to the storms as of Saturday afternoon.

The area along the state's I-40 corridor, packed with motorists when the storm occurred Friday, was particularly hard-hit. The nine deaths included seven adults and two children. A mother and a child were killed when their car rolled over, KFOR-TV reported.

One person died at El Reno, the first city struck by the storm, said Amy Elliott, a spokeswoman for the state medical examiner. Details on the other deaths were not available, Elliott said.

A tornado was reported on the ground in Moore, where a mammoth May 20 twister killed 24 people and left the southern Oklahoma City suburb in ruins, KOKH-TV reported.

Will Rogers World Airport, southwest of Oklahoma City, was closed Friday evening and reopened overnight.

Rick Smith, the warning coordination meteorologist for the National Weather Service at Norman, said that while the storm packed a powerful punch, with winds estimated at 80 mph, it wasn't as strong as the Moore tornado.

Smith also said it was fortunate that the storm largely bypassed the center of the city.

In Missouri, the combination of high water and fallen power lines closed dozen of roads, snarling traffic on highways and side streets in the St. Louis area. At the Hollywood Casino in suburban Maryland Heights, gamblers rushed from the floor as a storm blew out windows and tore off part of the roof.

Weather Channel meteorologist Mike Bettes sustained minor injuries after the "tornado hunt" car in which he was riding in Oklahoma was thrown about 200 yards by a tornado.

The storms were moving east at a slow pace and severe weather is expected "all the way up into Maine and as far south into Georgia," said meteorologist Eric Fisher of The Weather Channel. "Flash flooding is going to make travel very difficult."

Contributing: Associated Press