At least 89 people have died in Joplin, Missouri and the toll is expected to climb, after a monster tornado roared through the small Midwestern city on Sunday afternoon, local officials said on Monday.

Rescue crews from throughout the region were deployed to the town of about 50,000 people to help dig through the rubble, and aid those left injured and homeless.

"We are recovering the dead," Joplin police Sergeant Bob Higginbotham said.

A White House official said President Barack Obama was briefed multiple times about the tornadoes on the Air Force One flight to Ireland and asked his staff to stay in close touch with state and local authorities. – Reuters