Our Daily Planet: St. Louis Airport Tornado Video and Ohio River Flooding

Each weekday morning, OurAmazingPlanet takes the pulse of the Earth, reporting on natural phenomena and exploration news from around the globe.

Shark Fin Soup: Due to concerns about overfishing, shark fin soup is loosing its appeal in Hong Kong.

Good Friday Tornado: The storm that hit the St. Louis airport eventually strengthened to an EF-4, the second highest rating on the Enhanced-Fujita tornado damage scale, with winds of up to 200 mph (322 kph). The EF-4 is the year's first.

Louisville Flooding: The worst may be to come for the surging Ohio River. Louisville and other towns are bracing for more flooding this week.

Previously on Our Daily Planet: Inside Japan's Nuclear Hot Zone and Indiana Tornadoes

Reach OurAmazingPlanet staff writer Brett Israel at bisrael@techmedianetwork.com. Follow him on Twitter @btisrael.

Brett Israel was a staff writer for Live Science with a focus on environmental issues. He holds a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry and molecular biology from The University of Georgia, a master’s degree in journalism from New York University, and has studied doctorate-level biochemistry at Emory University.