Chesapeake Energy Corp. announced Tuesday a joint venture in the Haynesville Shale natural gas field that will make the Oklahoma City-company more than $3 billion.

The tornado-ravaged town of Picher appointed a new mayor Tuesday. Tim Reeves inherits a town that at the beginning of his term is looking for ways to close down for good.

The Mayo Hotel in Tulsa, a once-proud landmark turned eyesore, is getting a long-awaited makeover that will result in 72 apartments and 100 hotel rooms being added to downtown.

In OKC today: Mostly sunny. High near 94. South-southwest winds 11 to 18 mph, gusting to 25 mph.

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Today’s Oklahoma County bond issue election is mostly about Tinker Air Force Base. County leaders want to buy the abandoned General Motors plant on the south border of the base and lease it to Tinker. The county has negotiated a $55 million purchase of the plant from GM should voters approve the proposition.

Other bond propositions would pay for fixes to flood control, the county courthouse and county records retention, as well as a new county extension building.

You can find your Oklahoma County polling places online at NewsOK.com.

Ok turning to international headlines, in China, the toll of the dead and missing soared as rescue workers dug through flattened schools and homes today in a desperate attempt to find survivors of China’s worst earthquake in three decades.

In Oklahoma… As Picher residents searched Monday for their lost belongings in the rubble left by Saturday’s tornado, they faced a unique barrier to recovery: They can’t go back. With a federal buyout in progress, many storm victims don’t know what the future holds, but they know it won’t be in Picher. They say rebuilding would be foolish.

More severe weather is predicted to return today to Oklahoma.

A slight risk for severe thunderstorms will be east of a line from Medford and Enid to Lawton. Today: Mostly cloudy. Highs about 80 and windy. Thirty percent chance of thunderstorms, with some turning severe, in the late afternoon. 40 percent chance tonight.

The price of a first-class stamp rose to 42 cents Monday. But folks bought Forever stamps at 41 cents can still use them without extra postage. New Forever stamps went up to 42 cents.

NewsOK is free, be sure to check it out all today for the latest news and information.

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Also, the Picher tornado has been measured at an EF04.

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The Oklahoman’s photographers tell the story through their lens.

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The infant died at a Tulsa hospital. Identifying those killed could take up
to a week, according to
officials.

Several Picher residents told authorities they had no warning before the
tornado, which destroyed the south end of the city.

There are many people missing, but authorities could not give an estimate
given the extent of the damage. Crews and search dogs are going through the
town today.

At least 150 people — from scratches to more serious problems — were injured
in the Picher tornado, said Michelann Ooten, a spokeswoman for the state
Emergency Management Department.

Gov. Brad Henry declared a state of emergency late Saturday. He is expected
to tour the area this afternoon.

There will be official press conferences this afternoon. We will cover those
and provide video from them. Also, there are photo galleries from The
Oklahoman’s Matthew Strasen online at NewsOK.com. NewsOK.tv’s Tanner
Herriott is in Picher today as well and will be filing more video from the
scene.

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The death
toll has moved down from seven to six. The Oklahoman’s Michael Kimball and
Sheila Stogsdill are reporting.

The south end of Picher has been destroyed.

Oklahoma Highway Patrol Lt. George Brown said the infant died at a Tulsa
hospital and five adults were found dead in Picher. Identifying those killed
could take up to a week..

There are many people missing, but authorities could not give an estimate
given the extent of the damage.

At least a dozen ambulances were seen leaving the area shortly after the
twister struck. Utility poles were snapped in half in the area and car
windshields were blown out.

More than 30 people were transported to Integris Baptist Hospital in the
nearby town of Miami. Of those, more than 20 were treated and released.

At least five tornadoes in all touched down Saturday in northern and eastern
Oklahoma.

The Picher tornado is Oklahoma’s deadliest since the May 3, 1999, tornadoes
that killed 44 people in Oklahoma.

Gov. Brad Henry declared a state of emergency late Saturday.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Picher and all of the other
Oklahoma communities that have been impacted by the latest wave of severe
weather,” Henry said in a statement.

Federal and state officials will be on the scene Sunday or Monday to see if
the area qualifies for disaster relief assistance.

Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Tulsa, said he would work with Henry to get the area
declared a federal disaster area.

“I was down in Moore, Oklahoma, about 9 years ago and it was nothing like
this,” Inhofe said. “I’ve never seen anything like this.”

In all, at least 20 people have been killed in Oklahoma, Missouri and
Georgia.

The same storm system that ravaged Picher, also killed 12 in southwest
Missouri, according to the National Weather Service. Ten of the dead were
killed when a twister struck near Seneca, about 20 miles southeast of
Picher, near the Oklahoma border.

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