Tornado hits Joplin, Missouri (25 images)

The death toll from Sunday's Joplin, Mo., tornado rose to 122, making it the eighth-deadliest tornado in U.S. history, the National Weather Service said. The Joplin tornado was upgraded to EF-5, the strongest on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, and its winds were in excess of 200 mph.

Neighborhoods have been reduced to rubble in Joplin, Missouri as seen on May 25, 2011. Since the storm struck on May 22, 122 deaths have been confirmed, seven people rescued, and some 1,500 still missing. UPI/Rick Meyer

License photo | Permalink

---

---

A house that has been checked by first responders is marked in spraypaint in Joplin, Missouri on May 22, 2011. Officials say a tornado cut a path a mile wide by four miles, destroying over 2000 homes and businesses on May 22, claiming 116 lives so far. UPI/Tom Uhlenbrock

License photo | Permalink

---

---

A woman exits her destroyed home in Joplin, Missouri on May 24, 2011. The tornado that hit Joplin on May 22 has claimed 122 lives and is now the deadliest single U.S. tornado in about 60 years. UPI/Tom Uhlenbrock

License photo | Permalink

---

---

Residents pick through the reamins of their apartment complex in Joplin, Missouri on May 24, 2011. The tornado that hit Joplin on May 22 has claimed 122 lives and is now the deadliest single U.S. tornado in about 60 years. UPI/Tom Uhlenbrock

License photo | Permalink

---

---