Before/After Oklahoma Tornado Pictures Capture Devastation (LIVE UPDATES)

The tornado that hit Moore, Oklahoma on May 20 left many dead and injured, a school destroyed and a community to pick up the pieces.

While rescue workers are still in the process of assessing the damage, President Obama already declared Monday's tornado to be one of the most destructive in U.S. history.

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Focused on hope and rebuilding, the president said, "There are empty spaces where there used to be living rooms, and bedrooms, and classrooms, and, in time, we’re going to need to refill those spaces with love and laughter and community."

The National Weather Service gave the tornado a preliminary ranking of EF4, which puts it in the second most powerful category. According to the Associated Press, the twister was an estimated two miles wide with winds up to 200 mph.

Below are images showing what the Moore area looked like before the twister hit, and the tragic destruction that soon followed.

The fourth and fifth images below have been oriented with the south uppermost. (This reorients an earlier version that inverted one of each photographs.)