Jay Nixon also took swift action, activating the Missouri National Guard for debris removal and signing several executive orders to support Joplin’s recovery efforts. On May 23, 2011, one day after the storm, FEMA issued an amendment to offer critical emergency needs for Jasper and Newton counties, including emergency protective measures funding. “All night, we heard loud sirens, search dogs barking and people screaming while they combed through the rubble in hopes of finding their loved ones. “It was so dark when night fell,” said KY3 On Your Side reporter Ashley Reynolds, who had the initial on-air report for KY3 on May 22, 2011. “When you talked to survivors, you could feel the heartbreak they shouldered for those hurt and those who didn’t survive.” Adler says the devastation reminded him of what he witnessed in 2005 when covering Hurricane Katrina for his previous station. The first time in Joplin, I couldn’t believe it,” said KY3 News Anchor Paul Adler. “I’ve seen damage from many tornadoes throughout the Midwest. “It was extraordinarily difficult to find all the right words.” “I still cannot wrap my mind around the absolute devastation,” said KY3 News Anchor Steve Grant. I was glad to see that thing weaken, and the tornado it was producing was sporadic but no larger than EF2.”Īs survivors slowly returned from their shelter, they came back to see their community devastated by miles upon miles of tornado damage. “By the time I reached the office, the storm had turned right and was headed for Galena. “On the current track, that tornado was headed straight for Springfield,” said Hearst. NWS reports the tornado dissipated around 6:12 p.m. Generations braved the monster storm for more than half an hour before it weakened. It intensified to catastrophic levels when it officially reached Joplin city limits at 5:41 p.m. The twister formed near the junction of State Highway JJ and West 32nd Street. NWS reports the tornado initially hit at 5:34 p.m. This provided most residents with at least 17 minutes of lead time in advance of the tornado, according to an NWS Story Map. After communicating with emergency officials, the NWS Forecast Office in Springfield issued a tornado warning for Joplin and neighboring communities at 5:17 p.m. “Two thunderstorms eventually merged just west of Joplin and began producing the mega tornado.”įast-forward several hours, storm chasers and spotters reported multiple vortices just west of Joplin city limits. “At one point there were five or six storms all capable of producing, or ones that produced a tornado over in southeast Kansas,” recalls KY3 Chief Meteorologist Ron Hearst. Meteorologists tracked a supercell thunderstorm forming between southeast Kansas and southwest Missouri, though it wasn’t exactly clear what the storm system would bring into the early evening. CT, indicating conditions were favorable for tornadoes in Missouri and three neighboring states.Ĭold fronts clashed with warm fronts throughout the afternoon. Two days later, NWS issued a tornado watch around 1:30 p.m. The National Weather Service projected the potential for a severe weather system two days in advance, issuing an alert for a hazardous weather outlook on May 20, 2011. Fewer than one percent of all tornadoes reach EF5 status, while even fewer of those strike populated areas, like Joplin, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. The loss of tree cover remains one of the starkest legacies of one of the nation's worst tornadoes.The 2011 twister not only embodied characteristics of the “Tornado Alley” region but carried them out to an extent rarely seen in the Midwest.
However, some commercial and residential lots remain vacant. The Joplin Globe estimated this tornado generated about 4.1 million cubic yards of residential and commercial debris.įive years later, new homes have been built in these tornado-scarred neighborhoods. ( MORE: 7 Things You Should Never Forget When Tornadoes Strike) (Google Earth)Some neighborhoods were left unrecognizable.Ībout 7,500 residential dwellings were left damaged or destroyed, affecting more than 17,000 residents, according to "32 Minutes in May," a book published by The Joplin Globe.Ī June 2013 study from the American Society of Civil Engineers concluded more than 83 percent of structural damage was caused by winds only up to EF2 intensity, though, as mentioned above, National Weather Service storm surveys finding removal of concrete parking stops, manhole covers, and scoured-out pavement was used to justify an EF5 rating. The Walmart Supercenter (blue), Academy Sports and Outdoors store (yellow) and Pizza Hut (red) are highlighted. Before, after and March 2016 view of businesses damaged by the EF5 tornado in Joplin, Missouri.
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