FIVE DAYS AFTER one of the most destructive tornadoes to hit Oklahoma in decades, residents are coming to terms with the devastation.

Twenty four people were killed and more than 300 people were injured by Monday’s freak twister which tore through the US state, levelling entire neighbourhoods. Ten children died, including seven primary school children who were killed when their school was hit.

The tornado, which was two miles in diameter, destroyed or damaged an estimated 1,200 homes with around 33,000 people believed to have been affected in some way.

US President Barack Obama is due to visit the state on Sunday.

These photographs look at just how badly Oklahoma City and the nearby suburb of Moore were affected.

Rescuers dig through the rubble of a collapsed wall at the Plaza Tower Elementary School on Monday. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

The wreckage of the Plaza Towers Elementary School in Moore, Oklahoma. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki/Pool)

A child calls to his father after being pulled from the rubble of the Tower Plaza Elementary School on Monday (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

A child is pulled from the rubble of the school and passed to rescuers (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Part of a wall remains standing amid the wreckage of the Plaza Towers Elementary School. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)

Class photos decorate a classroom wall amid the wreckage of the Plaza Towers Elementary SChool. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)

A woman carries her child through a field near the collapsed school on Monday. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

A woman rushes to get help after finding her grandmother’s cat which had been buried in rubble for two days. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Christine Jones (in red jumper) is comforted by her cousin as she smiles and wipes away tears as she talks about looking for lost wedding rings at her home. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Kandi Scott salvages items from the rubble of her home. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)

A lifeless horse lies tangled in power lines in Moore on Tuesday. (AP Photo/Alonzo Adams)

Carol Kawaykla salvages items from her home on Thursday. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Chad Brown, right, helps his father Rick sift through the wreckage of his home on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)

Lauren Matthews, 7, takes a photo of the rubble of her home. (AP Photo/Alonzo Adams)

A concrete angel rests on a destroyed car. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

A resident looks through the rubble of a destroyed home. (AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)

Read: Two babies among the ten children killed in Oklahoma tornado >

Read: Massive hailstones fell in Oklahoma before the twister hit >

Video: Emotional reunion as tornado survivor finds dog buried alive under house >