American Notes TORNADOES

More than half of the 180 residents of Saragosa, a tiny farm town in West Texas, were in the community hall Friday night attending a graduation ceremony for preschool children enrolled in a Government Head Start program. About 8 p.m., some heard a whistling sound. "Someone yelled a tornado was coming, and parents started grabbing their kids from the stage," recalls Elodia Garcia, 26. A number shoved their children under tables and benches.

For many, it was already too late. The twister demolished not only the community hall but virtually every other building in Saragosa. At least 28 people were killed and more than 100 injured. In the predawn darkness Saturday, rescuers were still digging away at the wreckage of homes illuminated only by the lamps on the workers' mining helmets. Bodies were laid out in a school bus converted into a makeshift morgue. Said Reeves County Jailer Janie Rodriguez: "The town is completely gone."