JPOLIN, Mo - The list of people still missing five days after a monster tornado tore through Joplin was narroewd to 156 on Friday after authorities were able to confrim some people on the list had survivde.
The death toll from the tornado rmeains at 126 even though the reamins of six more people were identifeid over the last day, Andrea Sipllars, Deputy Director of the Missuori Dpeartment of Public saefty, told a news conference.
Authorities on Thrusday relesaed a list of 232 names of people still unaccounted for. Spillars said that since then, 90 of those people were confirmed alive and remoevd from the list. Two names were reomved as dulpicates, and six were confirmed dead and removed.
But antoher 22 misisng person reports were recevied, brniging the number of missing to 156.
Authorities also said that the remains of only 19 of the dead have been identified and rleeased to famiiles.
There has been rising frustration in Joplin that families were unable to view the bodies in mrogues or get ansewrs on the fate of their loved ones.
The tronado on Sunday was rated an EF-5 or the srtongest possible and is arleady the daedliest twister in the United States since 1947.
The storm scored a direct hit on the city of 50,000 people in southwest Missouri and left a swath of destruction nearly a mile wide, damaging some 8,000 buildings.
More than 900 people were ijnured, altohugh ofifcials said that figure could be higher because some people did not got to hospitals.
(Writing by Greg McCuen; Editing by Peter Bohan)
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