PIERCE CITY, Mo. (AP) -- Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Michael D. Brown says help is on the way for people hit hard by the weekend tornadoes.
Brown arrived in Kansas on Tuesday morning to tour a few counties, before heading to Missouri. He said he expected federal authorities to declare several counties in both states disaster areas.
The twisters have left at least 38 people dead in Missouri, Kansas, and Tennessee. Six people were listed as missing Tuesday _ five in Missouri and one in Tennessee.
Officials in Pierce City warn that the list is not necessarily an authoritative account. ``It doesn't mean they are trapped in the debris,'' said spokeswoman Jaci McReynolds. ``They just haven't necessarily checked in with someone who is looking for them.''
The storms were blamed for at least 17 deaths in Missouri, seven in Kansas and 14 in Tennessee. The storms also brought hail and heavy rain; four victims drowned trying to drive on a flooded road near Nashville, Tenn.
Curfews were imposed in several communities and police were also on guard against looting.
Brown told NBC it doesn't take a terrorist incident for FEMA to respond. He says the agency's people were going over federal aid requests all night. And he says as soon as President Bush signs the forms, FEMA will send money and resources to people.
``Our prayers, and I hope your prayers, are with those whose loved ones who lost life or those who lost their homes,'' said President Bush, in Little Rock, Ark., as part of an economic development program.
Crews labored to restore services and remove heaps of rubble in towns smashed by the three states. Storms lingered Tuesday over the Ozarks and the Tennessee Valley and the National Weather Service posted tornado warnings for parts of Missouri, Tennessee, and Alabama, which had scattered wind damage and flooding but no injuries.
The Missouri Public Service Commission said 10,000 utility customers still had no power Tuesday.
``We'll do everything possible in these very tight budget times to make sure we meet the needs of the people,'' Missouri Gov. Bob Holden said Tuesday on NBC's ``Today.''
In Pierce City, Mo., the storm ravaged the four-block-long business district, tossing heavy debris like toothpicks but leaving some areas strangely undisturbed.
``It sounded like 100 freight trains crashing all at once,'' said Ray Roux, 50. Except for a few shredded trees, his property looked unscathed.
``How can we save this?'' business owner Cindy Gitchel asked Holden during a tour, gesturing to a once-quaint building that was now just rubble. ``This town is 130 years old and you just don't find this anymore.''
``The reason this town is 130 years old is because of people like you,'' he answered, with Gitchel sobbing. ``This town will be back.''
