JOPLIN, Mo. — There’s a scar through the middle of Joplin, a mile wide and 6 miles long. All that’s left after a deadly tornado are a few twisted tree stumps, chunks of chewed up pavement and the tattered remains of homes and businesses.
The football stadium still stands. So much of the town is gone. The storm that churned through southwest Missouri on May 22 forever altered its landscape. More than 2,000 buildings were destroyed, 160 people killed, $3 billion in damage left behind.
Just about the only thing the storm didn’t destroy was the spirit of the people who call Joplin home. Not even 200- mph winds and golf ball-sized hail could make a dent in that.
On Saturday night, they converged on Junge Stadium for the first home football game of the season. More than 10,000 fans were expected to jam a stadium built for 4,500 to watch Joplin High face Hillcrest. There was a moment of silence and a concert and flyover before the game kicked off. For just a few hours, there was going to be a sense of normalcy.
“Win or lose, they’re going to be able to talk about this for the rest of their lives,” said Dan Hueller, Joplin High’s assistant principal. “These are the kinds of things we want our kids to remember, not the disaster that’s taken place.”
