Joplin Tornado Case Study

On May 22, 2011, an EF5 tornado tore through Joplin, Missouri, killing 161 people and causing over 1,000 injuries as the powerful storm destroyed over 2,000 buildings, making it the deadliest single tornado on record in the U.S. since 1950.

The afternoon was hot and humid on May 22, 2011, resulting in a supercell thunderstorm that was tracked from extreme southeast Kansas into far southwest Missouri. This storm along with others generated additional tornadoes, wind damage and flash flooding across far southwest Missouri. The Joplin Tornado consisted of winds in excess of 200 mph, was ¾ of a mile wide, and had a track lasting six miles. At 5:17 p.m. local time, a tornado warning was implemented by the the NWS Springfield Weather Forecast Office. This allowed citizens to be alerted of the disaster 17 minutes before the touchdown of the tornado at approximately 5:35 pm and 19 minutes before it entered Joplin. The tornado followed a path eastward across Joplin and then across Interstate 44 into rural portions of

Visitors traveling to Branson started pulling off to visit Joplin and spend money to help the economy. When hotels weren’t able to effectively answer many of the visitors’ questions about the tornado, they resorted to going to local restaurants to gather intel. Both hotel and restaurant employers had to equip for the rush of tourists by hiring more staff to accommodate their needs. Free tourist maps were designed to keep visitors on main thoroughfares and out of neighborhoods, while accurately showing the storm’s wide path of destruction. Convention and visitors bureau recently discussed offering guided bus tours and even a smartphone app of the damage and reconstruction. Those victimized by the twister disagreed with this decisions as they didn’t want their damaged homes on display for strangers to