Oklahoma governor: More storm shelters would be 'wise'

The level of destruction from Monday's tornado is enormous.

"We are, we hope, in the recovery stages now," said Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin. "They are starting to move the debris off the roadways onto the side or the curbs."

Clearing debris quickly is important as things begin to rot and smell quickly. Fallin said for now cleanup crews are not touching homes or private property, allowing individuals to come and look for personal things first.

People can take charge of their own property and clear the debris around their homes by themselves if they want to, "but if they need help, we're going to be here to help them," said Fallin.

In the wake of the tornado, which flattened two schools and killed ten children, Mayor of Moore Glenn Davis said Wednesday he wants all new schools to have shelters.

"That's going to be up to the local school districts," said Fallin. "It's certainly wise to put in some type of storm shelter, whether it is a room that is being fortified, and is being used for dual purposes as a classroom, or band room."

The reason so many homes and schools in the area do not have shelters is because of the geology of Oklahoma dirt makes it very expensive and difficult to build shelters.

Fallin said after the powerful May 3, 1999 tornado struck the area, the state began giving incentives, and started the first-ever state rebate program that would match money or give grants to homeowners and business owners for building storm shelters.

Fallin said it is worth discussing and doing more to get storm shelters in place.