May 12, 2008 Tornadoes kill at least 22 across U.S. Play video

(NECN/ABC) - Another wave of tornadoes turned Mother's day weekend into tragedy in the Midwest and the South. At least 22 were killed as scores of twisters tore their way across four states. The toll may rise as officials assess the damage.

In Ahoskie, North Carolina, powerful winds lifted a church off its foundations, tearing the structure apart.

Meanwhile, a storm chaser caught this video in Picher, Oklahoma, where powerful winds, up to 175 mph, flattened the tiny town of 800.

Some residents were killed as they tried to flee in their cars.

Leftover waste from lead and zinc mines has turned the town of Picher into an environmental cleanup site. The federal government was already buying up houses, so there is little hope that residents whose homes were destroyed will be rebuilt.

The killer storm then moved to Missouri, creating a mile-wide path of destruction there.

ABC's Diana Alvear has more from Picher, Oklahoma.