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Exploring probable reasons for record fatalities: the case of 2011 Joplin, Missouri, Tornado

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Abstract

On the evening of 22 May 2011, an EF-5 tornado tore a path six miles long across Joplin, Missouri, USA, killing 162 people as it passed through the heart of the city. This tornado stands as the deadliest single tornado to hit the United States since modern recordkeeping began in 1950, surpassing the tornado of 8 June 1953 that claimed 116 lives in Flint, Michigan. The record number of deaths caused by the single tornado in Joplin was far higher than the average annual number of US tornado deaths over the last three decades. This study explores the reasons for the high number of fatalities caused by the 2011 Joplin tornado. Questionnaire surveys administered among tornado survivors and informal discussions with emergency management personnel and others suggest that five reasons are associated with the high number of tornado fatalities experienced in Joplin: (1) the sheer magnitude of this event; (2) its path through commercial and densely populated residential areas; (3) the relatively large size of damage area; (4) the physical characteristics of affected homes in Joplin; and (5) the fact that some residents ignored tornado warnings. Several recommendations are offered, the implementation of which should reduce future tornado fatalities not only in Joplin, but elsewhere in the United States.

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Notes

  1. Various sources report different fatality totals for the 2011 Joplin, MO, tornado. As of May 2012, the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) reported a death toll of 158 (SPC 2012). SPC’s total includes only deaths directly related to the event. However, one or more indirect deaths are also caused by this tornado. For example, a policeman was struck by lightning and killed while assisting with recovery and cleanup efforts the day after the tornado. Several people died from injuries more than a month after the tornado. An evaluation report of the National Weather Service (NWS) claims that there were 159 direct fatalities and 3 indirect fatalities caused by the 2011 Joplin tornado (SPC 2012).

  2. The average tornado damage area in the United States is less than one square mile (Simmons and Sutter 2011).

  3. This audible range was suggested by Keith Stammer of JCEOC.

  4. In reviewing studies dealing with response to tornado warnings in the United States, Simmons and Sutter (2011) found that the reported response rates range from just under 30 % to almost 90 %.

  5. Many respondents suspected that the number of deaths would have been higher if the Joplin High School graduation had been held at the school auditorium rather than on the Southwest Missouri State campus, which was outside of the tornado’s path. After such a ceremony, people generally remain in the area for some time to socialize, and maintenance personnel also stay for cleaning purposes.

  6. For 2000–2010 period, the permanent homes accounted for 32 % of all tornado fatalities in the United States (SPC 2011).

  7. Joplin has two large medical facilities, a growing medical spin-off industry, numerous restaurants and an active trucking industry, as well as shopping facilities.

  8. In the 1990s, FEMA provided residents of several cities in Kansas and Oklahoma grants in the range of $3,000–$5,000 to incorporate a concrete safe room into their existing homes (Pattan 2003).

  9. After a destructive tornado affected Seneca, Missouri (20 miles southeast of Joplin), in 2008, the city built such a community shelter.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the grant from the Natural Hazards Center, University of Colorado at Boulder, which supported this research. We also thank the members of the survey team, James Wells, Brandon Haddock, Patrick Rissler (Kansas State University, Department of Geography) and Tom Davis (Cloud County Community College, Department of Social Science), for their hard work in collecting the data used in this research. We are grateful to Keith Stammer, Joplin Emergency Operations Center Director, for granting us an interview, as well as arranging for the mapping division to provide us with the very useful warning siren location data and the FEMA-derived damage data on the tornado. We also thank the two anonymous reviewers for commenting on this work and suggesting quality improvements. Finally, we thank the generous residents of Joplin, and those who took the time to complete our survey, aiding us in completing this important research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS, 66506, USA

    Bimal Kanti Paul

  2. Department of Natural and Physical Sciences, Cloud County Community College, Junction City, KS, 66441, USA

    Mitchel Stimers

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  1. Bimal Kanti Paul
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Correspondence to Bimal Kanti Paul.

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Paul, B.K., Stimers, M. Exploring probable reasons for record fatalities: the case of 2011 Joplin, Missouri, Tornado. Nat Hazards 64, 1511–1526 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-012-0313-3

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