May 13, 2008, Richard and I were in Joplin,
Missouri, where our friends, Jack and Jeannie Dickson live. They had just arrived at our bus so we could
go out to dinner. I may be from Florida
where we are known for hurricanes, but I am no stranger to tornados. The sky turned putrid green. I said a tornado was coming. We closed all the window shades, got down on
the floor as hail loudly pelted against the metal sides of the bus and the wind
vibrated the floor.
We later learned
it was the edge of an EF4 tornado that took seven lives in a nearby Oklahoma
town about 2 miles away. We went on to Alaska with $20,000
worth of hail damage to our bus. Scary!!
On the morning
of May 23, 2011, my son Ryan called me early on that Monday morning and asked
if I’d heard from Aunt Jeannie. I said
no. He told me to turn on the news. I think I may have been in a little bit of a
state of shock when I saw the devastation that had been done the evening before to a six mile strip of Joplin,
Missouri. I immediately started calling
Jeannie, but got no answer.
I stayed glued
to the television for hours, my heart in my throat. I finally got in touch with her and found
they were okay. They’d been on their way
back to Joplin from Springfield. They
had been out of the storm’s actual path, but not of the severe downpour and debris falling all
around them. Jeannie was in the floorboard praying. Once they got back to
town, they couldn’t get to their home for 24 hours. They spent the night with Jeannie’s sister
who lives in an undamaged part of Joplin.
A lot of the destruction was very near to them. They had minor damage compared to the
war-like scene they had to drive through to get to their home. Their motor home was stored a couple of miles
away, which they couldn’t get to for several days.
Here are some of
the statistics about the EF5 that shredded 30% of Joplin, Missouri.
“The trees will
grow back, the houses will be built back, but the lives lost here, we’ll
remember forever.” --Governor Jay Nixon
May 22, 2011, at
5:41 pm, for twenty minutes, wind exceeding 200 mph left a path of destruction
through a city of 50,000 people. That
path was three-fourths of a mile wide and six miles long.
161 people died
8,000 buildings
destroyed
Half of the
city’s schools were destroyed
7th
deadliest tornado in US history
My
daughter-in-law, Heather works at the Jacksonville Humane Society. She was part of a team sent to Joplin to work
with the rescued animals. She was here
about a week.
Of course, I
can’t show you pictures of the aftermath, but here is a link that will give you
an idea of what Joplin looked like. Before and After aerial view of Joplin
Each one of the
161 people who lost their lives (some died several weeks later) had their own
story. I’ve read about each one. I’d like to tell you about a couple that (as
a mother and grandmother) touched me deeply.
William Richard
"Will" Norton, (18). Will and
his father were on their way home from Will’s graduation from Joplin High
School. The storm hit and pulled Will
through the sunroof of the car. His
father had held onto Will’s body until the storm sucked him from the car. The young man was found in a pond a few days
later.
Skyular Logston (16
months old) Skyular was sucked from his
mother's arms as she, Skyular’s father and grandparents hunkered down in their
home. His injured parents and
grandparents survived.
Christopher D. Lucas
(27) Pizza Hut manager lauded a hero for getting
customers and employees into a walk-in freezer.
He tried to hold the door shut, but couldn’t. Christopher was Navy veteran with 2 children
and a third on the way.
Kayleigh Savannah Teal
(16) A sophomore at Seneca High School
was working at the Pizza Hut when the storm hit.
There were many, many
more sad stories. Many people died in
the hospital which is now in the process of being rebuilt.
Today a tornado hit Wichita,
Kansas and that weather cell is now headed to Joplin. I’m getting ready to go to bed, cover up my
head, and pray like crazy that it isn’t my time to go. I’ll check back in tomorrow to let you know
how Richard and I made out. One thing we
have decided is that we won’t be back to Joplin between the dates of May 13-May
22.
I'll never forget that day two years ago. I didn't have friends or family in Joplin, but a close and dear friend of mine does, and I have followed that family's journey back to "normalcy" (whatever that is.) The family lost their home, but the entire family was safe, even the dog. Following the mother's blog has taught me that even on my worst day. I don't have a problem!
ReplyDeleteKellie, it is a sad story. Even for me, as an outsider, I've been here enough to realize that the open stretches along the main street were once filled with thriving business-franchises and mom and pop. They are no longer there. Most of the houses are new construction.
ReplyDeleteI've seen tornado devastation before, growing up in Tornado Alley. But the pictures of Joplin were some of the worst. Bless them and hope they'll be spared any tornadoes for a long time.
ReplyDeleteI know they appreciate that, Sharon.
ReplyDelete