Even though the Tinker Federal Credit Union branch in Moore,Okla., sustained considerable damage, its employees safely escapedharm by huddling in the vault while a massive tornado devastatedthe city of 55,000 people about 11 miles south of Oklahoma City onMonday afternoon.

“TFCU employees, following established safety procedures, weresafe in the branch's vault during the storm,” according to a statement on TFCU'swebsite and Facebook page.“All branch employees were released unharmed from the vault withassistance of first responder

Also from Oklahoma Tornado:

• Loans to Offer Shelter From the Storms
• Ohio, Kansas, California Joins in ReliefEffort
• Pen Air FCU Starts ReliefCollections
• Redstone Collecting Donations inAlabama
• Manager Tells Tale of Tinker Safe Survival(video)
• Leagues Chip In, Life-Saving Vault StillInaccessible
• CUNA Mutual Contacts 57 CUs
• Branch's Vault Still StandsSentinel
• NCUA Activates Relief Policy
• Weokie Staff Also Retreated toVault
• CUNA Mutual Sending DisasterTeam
• League, NCUF Assessing Impact

The tornado hit Moore at 3:17 p.m., according to the city ofMoore. Dozens of people, including children huddled in elementaryschools, lost their lives.

TFCU said the Moore branch will be closed indefinitely. Aboutnine branches, including its branches on Tinker Air Force Base, hadbeen closed on Monday afternoon.

TFCU's branch is located at 400 S.W. 6^th Street. Lessthan a tenth of a mile from the TFCU branch is the Weokie Credit Unionbranch at 1551 S I-35 Service Road, which also had been closed,according to a statement posted at 4 p.m. Monday on the $893million credit union's site. The credit union did not post anyreports about its branch employees.

About a mile north from TFCU's branch is the Oklahoma EducatorsCredit Union branch. As of Monday night, the $106 million creditunion did not post any news on its site about the branch. A CreditUnion Services Center also has an office at 741 N. Moore Ave. As ofMonday night, there had been no statements posted on itswebsite.