Lebanon --> Joplin: Devastation & Recovery

As far away as Stanton, Illinois, we've heard updates from folks along the Route about Joplin. Rich Henry said that Route 66 was still passable; Ramona Lehman described how an 18-year-old was pulled from his car by the tornado; Janean Turner explained how Missouri would come together to help Joplin recover. “It’s what we do in this part of the country,” she said. While we could feel the disaster's impact intensify as we traveled closer to Joplin, no one – no picture, no news story – could have prepared us for what we saw.

As we left Carthage towards Joplin, it began to rain. Dark blue clouds loomed above the entire area, but began to fade away as we entered town. “It looks like 422,” Joe said, referring to the four-lane road that runs through central Pennsylvania. “Except all of the signs are advertising disaster supplies.” In the northern part of Joplin, through which Route 66 goes, life appeared rather normal – cars lined up in drive-thrus, open signs glowed on store fronts. But out of place were the American flags at half-staff, the insurance company tour buses, the news crews.

And then we turned down Main Street. At first, we saw businesses with destroyed awnings, busted windows, and wooden signs announcing “Food” or “Water” in red spray paint. There are no words to describe what followed except complete, concentrated destruction. We saw sheet metal wrapped around telephone poles like ribbons on a gift box; cars folded in half or crushed to half their size; storefronts pealed away, revealing an intact dentist office or restaurant. And rubble. Rubble is everywhere.

For those who can’t see Joplin first-hand – who have only imperfect news coverage or even rumors – we just say this. Joplin is devastated, but it’s not destroyed. Roads are open. Many businesses are still operating. Community members are out on the streets helping one another. Dozens of companies and organizations have set up recovery centers in any parking lot available to them.

Even in the most devastated areas, much has survived.

And the very best way you can help is to donate to a trusted organization experienced in disaster recovery and knowledgeable of the area. Here is one: http://www.ozarksredcross.org/