Obama tours tornado-hit Joplin, promises sustained federal help to recover

[News_Editor]

Obama tours tornado-hit Joplin, promises sustained federal help to recover

2011-05-30 09:06:46 GMT+7 (ICT)

JOPLIN, MISSOURI (BNO NEWS) -- U.S. President Barack Obama on Sunday traveled to the Missouri city of Joplin, where a violent tornado killed nearly 140 people and injured nearly 1,000 others earlier this month.

Recovery operations that began on May 22 when the EF-5 tornado ripped through the city are still continuing in an effort to find nearly 40 people who remain unaccounted for. It is the deadliest single tornado in the United States since modern record-keeping began in 1950.

Obama arrived at Joplin Regional Airport at around 12.22 p.m. local time after Air Force One flew over the city. "From the air, it looked as if a massive bulldozer drove straight through the center of town," one reporter who was aboard Air Force One said.

After deplaning, the president was greeted by Missouri Governor Jay Nixon and his wife, as well as U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill, Joplin Mayor Mike Woolston, and other state and federal officials.

Obama soon witnessed the disaster from the ground after a short motorcade ride. "Main Street's signs were missing as we got closer," one reporter traveling with the president said. "The damage is unreal. Fields of debris where there were houses. Tree trunks, missing their branches are white where the bark was stripped."

After arriving in the hard hit area, Obama spoke with a woman in front of a house of which only the chimney, adorned with an American flag, and part of the foundation remained. "Obviously the scene speaks for itself," Obama told reporters. "When we were in Tuscaloosa a few weeks ago, I talked about how I had not seen devastation like that in my lifetime. You come here to Joplin and it is just as heartbreaking and in some ways even more devastating."

"The main thing I just want to communicate to the people of Joplin is this is just not your tragedy," the president said. "This is a national tragedy and that means there will be a national response. [..] We're going to do everything we can to continue whatever search and rescue remains. We are doing everything we can to make sure that folks get the shelter that they need, the support that they need."

Obama has emphasized several times that the federal government will continue to help rebuild Joplin after the news media leaves. "We are not going to stop until Joplin is fully back on its feet," he said as he toured the disaster area.

The president said it was 'incredible' how volunteers have come to help from as far away as Texas. "It's an example of what the American spirit is all about. And that gives us a lot of encouragement at a time when obviously people are going through a lot of hardship," he added.

Obama also urged all Americans to make a contribution to the American Red Cross or other charitable organizations which are active in Joplin. "That can make an enormous difference," he said, recognizing that many victims have lost their entire homes and means of transportation. "Even if it's just $5, $10, whatever you've got to spare -- because one of the things that's striking about this -- and I felt the same way when I was down in Alabama -- this can happen to anybody. The difference between you being in the path of this twister and a few blocks away, you being okay, is a very slim, slim margin."

After touring the area, Obama spoke briefly at a memorial service which was held at the Missouri Southern University. "I was overseas in the aftermath of the storm, and had world leaders coming up to me saying, let the people of Joplin know we are with them; we're thinking about them; we love them. Because the world saw how Joplin responded," Obama told the audience.

The president focused his brief remarks on the people who gave their lives to save others, such as 26-year-old Christopher Lucas who was working as manager on duty at Pizza Hut. When the sirens went, Lucas ushered everybody into the company's walk-in freezer.

"The only problem was, the freezer door wouldn't stay closed from the inside. So as the tornado bore down on this small storefront on Range Line Road, Christopher left the freezer to find a rope or a cord or anything to hold the door shut," Obama said. "He made it back just in time, tying a piece of bungee cord to the handle outside, wrapping the other end around his arm, holding the door closed with all his might. And Christopher held it as long as he could, until he was pulled away by the incredible force of the storm. He died saving more than a dozen people in that freezer."

As of late Sunday, Missouri state officials said at least 139 people have been killed while nearly 1,000 others have been injured. A total of 39 people remain unaccounted for, but some are believed to be among the fatalities who have not yet been identified.

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