Missouri Residents Relying on the Red Cross as Recovery Begins

Written by Bonnie Gillespie, Staff Writer, RedCross.org

Stockton, Missouri, May 7, 2003 — The buzz of chainsaws crackling through splintered wood and the rumble of bulldozers shoveling debris echoed across the once quiet community of Stockton, Mo, Tuesday afternoon. Nestled in the picturesque Ozark foothills, more than 2,000 residents are picking up the pieces and beginning to recover from the wrath of a half-mile wide tornado that tore their town apart late Sunday afternoon.

The twister that hit Stockton obliterated everything in it's path.

But Stockton residents are not alone. Twisters lashed communities across a large portion of the Midwest last Sunday as a vicious storm system pummeled portions of four states, killing at least 40 people, leaving hundreds homeless and causing billions of dollars in estimated damages.

“The only thing I can compare this situation to is a war scene,” said Red Cross volunteer Joseph Meuser of Lamar, Mo., who returned to his hometown of Stockton to help his former neighbors recover. “When I was a soldier in World War II, it was like this after all the fighting ended – no one had water or food and everything was destroyed.”

It will take months to rebuild the once quaint and quiet downtown area.

From the moments following the disastrous storms, American Red Cross volunteers have been providing shelter, water, first aid kits, food, clothing and other essential items to storm victims. With emergency services spanning the affected area, hundred of Red Cross staff and volunteers will continue to assist storm victims as their shock subsides and recovery begins.

“I’m tired but ok,” said Laura Clopper, a Red Cross volunteer who also lives in Stockton. “My family is all safe and my house only lost part of the roof and the windows. It wasn’t completely destroyed like some people’s homes. I’m very grateful.”

After helping elderly neighbors during the storm, Clopper joined other Red Cross volunteers who were mobilizing to distribute emergency items and to open a shelter for the storm homeless.

“We loaded up an Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV) and drove to Stockton in the middle of the night in fog so thick we could barely see,” said Kelly Sandy, shelter manager and Director of the Clinton, Mo., chapter of the Red Cross. “And by the next day, we had six mental health workers here to counsel victims because the devastation here is so unbelievable.”

With possibly four lives lost in their community, the downtown in ruins, entire neighborhoods ransacked, 800 head of cattle missing from surrounding pastures and no electricity, water, sewer or phone service, Stockton residents, like other victims in storm-battered communities, are turning to the Red Cross for help.

Retired college professors Ginger and Bob Hendrickson huddled in the basement of their frame shop as the half-mile wide funnel cloud roared through downtown Stockton, leaving only a mountain of rubble above them. Now, as the couple waits for a demolition crew and insurance adjusters, they remember the Red Cross as first responders.

Ginger and Bob Hendrickson remain positive, even as they stand in front of their demolished frame shop in downtown Pierce City.

“When a former colleague called and asked, ‘What can I do to help? Give to the Red Cross?’ I said, ‘Sure, they’re here already,’” Ginger Hendrickson said with a smile.

Your Help is Needed

You can help the Red Cross assist victims of this and thousands of disasters across the country each year by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, which enables the Red Cross to provide shelter, food, counseling and other assistance to those in need.

You can make a secure online credit card donation or call 1-800-HELP NOW (1-800-435-7669) or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Or you may send your donation to your local Red Cross or to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, D.C. 20013.

Related Stories:

• More Than 5,000 Homes Damaged by Tornadoes
• Tornado Survivors Survey Damage
• Mass Clean-Up Underway as Tornado-Ripe Weather Continues
• Red Cross Responds to Deadly Weekend Tornadoes

Related Links:

• American Red Cross Rushes Relief to Tornado-Ravaged Midwest
• Disaster Safety - Tornado
• Family Disaster Planning
• Disaster Supplies Kit
• Children & Disasters

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All American Red Cross disaster assistance is free, made possible by voluntary donations of time and money from the American people. The Red Cross also supplies nearly half of the nation's lifesaving blood. This, too, is made possible by generous voluntary donations. You can help the victims of thousands of disasters across the country each year by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund, which enables the Red Cross to provide shelter, food, counseling and other assistance to those in need. You can make a secure online credit card donation or call 1-800-HELP NOW (1-800-435-7669) or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Or you may send your donation to your local Red Cross or to the American Red Cross, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, D.C. 20013. To donate blood, please call 1-800-GIVE-LIFE (1-800-448-3543), or contact your local Red Cross to find out about upcoming blood drives.