The region of the central United States named "Tornado Alley" certainly got its name for a reason, a reason which was affirmed this past Sunday and Monday. Though places like Moore, Oklahoma may have a history of tornado devastation, nobody can ever truly get used to such an event.

The devastation has already been immense. So far, dozens have been pronounced dead, including 20 children, and rescue workers are still searching for many more. The final death toll could be heart-wrenchingly large. One town was hit especially hard.

Moore, Oklahoma is a small suburb of Oklahoma City, and in the heart of Tornado Alley. On Monday it took a direct hit from the storm system that was producing dozens of twisters throughout the central United States over the weekend. The aftermath was sobering.

"When I got home I realized that there's nothing left of my house," an unidentified woman told CNN. "The front is still standing but the back is gone. My bathroom honestly is untouched. We've lost animals. We've lost everything...I and my family's OK and we'll make it... But everything's gone."

Accounts of heroism are already pouring in. There are reports of teachers using their bodies as shields for their students and men hurriedly cramming as many lost souls as they can into their storm cellars. Though these acts of kindness and bravery are evident to those who look for it, there is little room for celebration.

The physical toll of the tornadoes is evident enough. The town of Moore has been essentially reduced to rubble. Perhaps more than the physical destruction, however, it is the mental challenge of going through such an event that is truly testing the limits of this community's residents.

"I'll get it together again. I'll get it going. I just want to break down and cry but you've got to be strong and keep going," a now-homeless Steve Wilkerson said.

This is not the first time that Moore, Oklahoma has had to deal with the devastation that comes part-and-parcel with any army of tornadoes. Back in 1999, a similar storm happened upon Oklahoma's suburbs, killing 44 people.

"You can hear it, and you're scared, but when you come out and you see all the destruction around you, there aren't words to explain," observes one Moore resident, who was present for both the 1999 tornadoes and the ones that ore the town apart Monday.