Free Republic

Church members plan to protest when President Obama visits tornado victimsThe controversial Westboro Baptist Church is planning to protest President Obama's visit to Joplin, Missouri Sunday. On its website, the church writes, "Thank God for 125 dead in Joplin." Church members claim Missouri Governor Jay Nixon has attacked them by promoting laws banning them from protesting at soldiers' funerals.

State officials are announcing today the state of Missouri is taking over the listing of the names of the dead and unaccounted for. NBC Action News has learned that 232 names have been formally filed with the state as missing and that the estimate of 1,500 unaccounted for is considered much higher than the reality.

The remains of Skyular Logsdon, a 16-month-old who disappeared during the tornado Sunday in Joplin, were identified at a morgue there on Wednesday evening, a family member said.The search for Skyular, who was ripped from his mother’s arms by the storm, attracted national attention. The little boy’s great-uncle made the identification, said Rhonda Brewer, the stepmother of the child’s uncle. Skyular’s father was recently released from the hospital, and his mother is still being treated. Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2011/05/25/2904023/remains-of-missing-baby-skyular.html#ixzz1NPs11BhT

A 54-year-old Missouri woman has died after suffering a heart attack when told of her father's death in the Joplin tornado. The grieving woman collapsed after being told that her father was among the dead after the tornado hit. Newton County Coroner Mark Bridges said the woman who died on Tuesday didn't immediately learn of her father's death in the historic storm that has killed more than 120 people.

Ella Rogers saw the piece of paper in her yard and couldn't quite figure it out, at first. It was a canceled check, dated 1996 and written to a water company. Just a slip of paper, signifying a payment on a long-ago utility bill. The check was written by a woman in Joplin, whose house was destroyed in Sunday's storm. "She lost everything," a colleague of the Joplin woman told KSPR News on Tuesday. "We just collected money in the office for her because she doesn't have anything left." Save for her life, of course -- and her connection to...

Gannett publication; title and link only permitted on FR. Title is descriptive; story contains stunning aerial photograph closeups of the devastation plus links to many other stories of the disaster. Link: Storm rated an EF-5; death toll now stands at 122

Will Norton was on his way home from his Joplin High School graduation ceremony when the tornado hit on Sunday. The 18 year-old graduate was sucked through the sunroof of the car he was riding in with his father. He hasn’t been seen since.

Pregnancy Center in Joplin, Missouri Still Stands, Helps Others Joplin, Missouri -- Following the deadly tornadoes that ravaged this Missouri city, a pregnancy center that provides help for women seeking alternatives to abortions is still standing. Now, it is helping the local community that has seen so much suffering. http://www.lifenews.com/2011/05/24/pregnancy-center-in-joplin-missouri-still-stands-helps-others/

JOPLIN, Mo. — About 1,500 people are unaccounted for in this battered city, a Fire Department official said Tuesday, as rescue workers took advantage of a few hours of sunny weather to continue searching for survivors in buildings leveled by the country’s deadliest tornado in more than 60 years. At least 117 people have died. While the number of those unaccounted for is alarmingly high in a city with only 49,000 people — and raises the specter of a far higher death count — it may merely be a reflection of the widespread breakdown of communication systems here in the...

~ EXCERPT ~ JOPLIN, Mo. — About 1,500 people are unaccounted for in this battered city, a Fire Department official said Tuesday, as rescue workers took advantage of a few hours of sunny weather to continue searching for survivors in buildings leveled by the country’s deadliest tornado in more than 60 years. At least 117 people have died. **snip** Earlier Tuesday, President Obama, who is on a state trip in Britain, said that he was monitoring the federal response to the tornado and that he planned to visit Missouri on Sunday “to talk with folks who’ve been affected, to talk...

Caution: It is vitally important not to make connections. When you see pictures of rubble like this week’s shots from Joplin, Mo., you should not wonder: Is this somehow related to the tornado outbreak three weeks ago in Tuscaloosa, Ala., or the enormous outbreak a couple of weeks before that (which, together, comprised the most active April for tornadoes in U.S. history). No, that doesn’t mean a thing. It is far better to think of these as isolated, unpredictable, discrete events. It is not advisable to try to connect them in your mind with, say, the fires burning across Texas...

At least 116 people died in a massive tornado that left a path of destruction nearly a mile wide through the heart of Joplin, Missouri, on Sunday. The cyclone destroyed hundreds of homes and vehicles, as well as a high school and a hospital. Rescue teams have been working hard to find and assist as many people as possible, even as another storm system passes through region today.

major tornado hit south side,,hospital damage..home destroyed the weather channel live coming up

For the most part Joplinites have responded the way Midwesterners always do: they dug themselves out of the rubble, brushed themselves off, got their sense of humor in place, and went looking for someone in worse shape than they were to help. (With photos.)

Rainbow after Joplin Tornado

A massive tornado that ripped through the heart of Joplin Sunday evening killed at least 89 people, emergency officials said at a predawn news conference.

JOPLIN, Missouri -- A tornado ravaged parts of Joplin Sunday, killing at least 24 people as the powerful storm took out hundreds of homes and businesses. Jasper County Emergency Management Director Keith Stammer says a tornado hit the St. John's Regional Medical Center on the city's south side

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k26nt3Y4cmg&feature=related

Singer Janis Joplin dies from a heroin overdose at the Landmark Hotel in Hollywood. Joplin's unrestrained personality and passionate, raspy voice made her a symbol of the intensity and rebellious spirit of the late 1960s. Joplin was born in Port Arthur, Texas, in 1943. A moody, withdrawn teenager, she expressed herself through music, poetry, and art. At age 17, she ran away and began singing in nightclubs in Houston and Texas. In the 1960s, she moved to San Francisco, where eventually she joined a band called Big Brother and the Holding Company. The band released an album and was a...

Jopin, MO - RALLY FOR AMERICA Event: Peace Through Strength Rally Date: Saturday, March 1, 2003 Place: Joplin City Hall Steps Time: 11:00 AM Bring a PRAYER, flag, sign, or patriotic song or statement to support our troops. The Rally for America is for the people who despise war but understand that there are times when we have to fight; people who want to answer the "peace by appeasement" crowd. Sponsored by local citizens with the support of KQYX Radio. To be on the Speakers List, Contact: John Putnam - Event Coordinator 417-325-5444