Obama to travel to Missouri to assess tornado damage

President Obama announced Tuesday he will travel to Missouri on Sunday to assess the damage of a devastating tornado that killed at least 116 people in the town of Joplin.

The federal government will keep up its assistance in the tornado-stricken South "until every home is repaired, until every neighborhood is rebuilt, until every business is back on its feet," Mr. Obama said from London, where he is currently on the second leg of a six-day tour through Europe. He returns to the U.S. on Saturday.

Mr. Obama spoke on Monday with Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon over the phone, as did Homeland Security Chief Janet Napolitano.

"We've offered him not only our condolences, but we've told him that we will give him every ounce of resources the federal government may have that we can bring to bear on this situation," Mr. Obama said this morning.

On the CBS "Early Show" this morning, Nixon said he expects the death toll to rise as response crews work through "the worst tornado damage, as far as deaths, in the recent history of America." Continuing storms have hindered efforts to search for survivors, Nixon said. In fact, two law enforcement officials were struck by lightning on Monday night, he said.

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Administrator Craig Fugate has already traveled to Missouri with other federal officials to coordinate federal, state and local recovery efforts. The president acknowledged that the devastation in Joplin may exceed the damage in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, where tornadoes hit just a few weeks ago.

During his visit to Missouri, Mr. Obama said he plans to "talk with folks who've been affected, to talk to local officials about our response effort and hopefully to pray with folks and give them whatever assurance and comfort I can that the entire country is going to be behind them."

Watch Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon on the "Early Show":