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Massive tornado devastates much of Oklahoma City suburb; dozens killed

A monstrous tornado at least a half-mile wide roared through the Oklahoma City suburbs Monday, flattening entire neighborhoods and destroying an elementary school with a direct blow as children and teachers huddled against winds up to 200 mph. At least 51 people were killed, and officials said the death toll was expected to rise.

ROYALS NOTEBOOK

Royals’ Francoeur says it’s tough not to press as slump deepens

Veteran outfielder Jeff Francoeur admits it’s tough not to press on those occasions when he now finds himself in the starting lineup. "Yes, absolutely," he said, "but I’ve got to find a way to relax. I’ve just got to go out there and not try to do too much. Once I find it a way to do that, which hopefully will be here soon, I feel I’ll be back on track."

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Editor's Picks

Mary Sanchez

Did a sweatshop worker die for your sneakers?

Consumers need to keep pressing companies to follow through on their ethical commitments and codes of conduct. We need to make it clear that responsibility for poor working conditions and safety lapses rests with them, not just with third parties overseas.

Editorial

Don’t mess with school standards in Kansas

Many school districts have spent the last two years designing curricula around the Common Core standards, and state assessment tests have been overhauled to reflect what students will be learning. To overturn the efforts now would require millions of dollars to draw up new standards and design new curricula and tests.

University of Missouri

Deuce Bello will transfer from Baylor to Missouri

Former Baylor swingman Deuce Bello — once ranked by Rivals.com as the No. 54 player in the country — has decided to transfer to Mizzou. “I just feel like the coaching staff is good, and I’ve been cool with (associate coach) Tim (Fuller) for a while,” Bello said. “At Baylor, we played Mizzou three times and I like their style of play.”

Entertainment

A summer of dares

We're mere days away from Memorial Day weekend and another summer in Kansas City. What do you have planned? How about skydiving? Maybe tree climbing? We found 15 ways to break out of your Kansas City summer rut.

News

Party bus was operating illegally at time of fatal fall

The owners of the party bus didn't get the required U.S. Department of Transportation number. That registration would have required inspection and repairs on the bus on which the “door ajar” warning system wasn't working. When the bus hit a bump, the doors popped open and a woman tumbled to her death on Interstate 35.

News

First Kauffman Scholars prepare to graduate

Now in their senior years of college, more than half of the 125 in the first class have fallen out of college or are not on pace to graduate within five years. From the moment the foundation launched its first class as seventh-graders in 2003, it knew the critical measure of its investment would come now, 10 years later.