Moore Tornado 2013: Photos Show Oklahoma Twister Devastation (PICTURES, LIVE UPDATES)

A tornado hit the city of Moore, Oklahoma on Monday, leaving behind significant destruction.

The twister is one in a series of tornadoes that swept across the central United StatesSunday and Monday, killing two in Shawnee, with more fatalities expected.

According to a tweet from the National Weather Service, the tornado will receive a preliminary rating of at least EF 4.

This is not the first time that Moore has been hit by a major tornado. In 1999, an F5 tornado killed 36 people and injured 295, according to Yahoo! News. The city was hit again in 2003. Below are previous photos of tornado devastation in the area.

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The Associated Press reports on the aftermath:

The storm laid waste to scores of buildings in Moore, a community of 41,000 people about 10 miles south of the city. Block after block lay in ruins. Homes were crushed into piles of broken wood. Cars and trucks were left crumpled on the roadside.

Briarwood, Plaza Towers Elementary Schools Hit By Tornado In Moore, Oklahoma, Rescue Efforts Underway

Two elementary schools were directly impacted by a massive tornado in the Oklahoma City area on Monday, according to local media reports.

Plaza Towers Elementary School was flattened by the storm and Briarwood Elementary School was also reportedly severely hit. It is unclear at this time how many people were at the schools when the damage occurred, but search and rescue efforts are underway.

"Apparently some kids were being sheltered there [at Plaza Towers]," local TV station KFOR reported during its live coverage of the tornado. The local news outlet laterconfirmed that children were being pulled from debris at the Plaza Towers site.

According to News 9, an Oklahoma City Police Department representative has stated that there are currently no reports of injuries at the Briarwood Elementary scene. The school did, however, suffer "extensive damage."

UPDATE #3: KFOR is reporting that there were no fatalities at Briarwood Elementary and all students are accounted for.

UPDATE #2: An representative for Oklahoma Emergency Services confirmed in a press conference Monday night that there were casualties at the Plaza Towers Elementary School.

UPDATE: The AP is reporting that several children have been pulled out of the rubble alive at Plaza Towers Elementary School.

More from earlier:

Plaza Towers is located on the west side of Moore, just south of Oklahoma City. Briarwood Elementary is not far away, also on the same side of the town.