GOODMAN, Mo. — Highspeed wind continued to batter Goodman on Wednesday afternoon as emergency crews, linesmen and residents began sifting through the rubble left in the wake of an EF2 tornado Tuesday evening.
Since 2007, tornadoes have been rated on the Enhanced Fujita scale. This system classifies damage on a scale of EF0 to EF5. EF2 tornadoes are characterized by wind speed ranging from 110 to 137 mph.
Gregg Sweeten, director of McDonald County, Mo., Emergency Management, reported close to 50 homes and 15 businesses had light-moderate damage — more than in any prior storm.
“We’ve had smaller ones in the past, like back in ’08, but never of this magnitude,” Sweeten said.
Sweeten was happy to report there were no fatalities and only one injury, which wasn’t a direct result of the storm. A man broke his leg while running from his shed to his house to check on his belongings.
In addition to barricading roads and destroying property, the twister also left Goodman without power. Linemen and tree service workers lined the streets as they hastily worked to clear debris and resurrect electrical lines throughout town.
Fortunately, no debris interfered with the Kansas City Southern railroad and trains were able to pass through Goodman uninterrupted.
Whitmore and Wall streets were two of the heaviest-hit areas, with more than half of the homes on each street deemed uninhabitable for the time being. Some are considered so because of extensive damage while others are without power and water indefinitely.
“Those roads are challenging,” said Mayor Greg Richmond. “Their narrow streets and narrow ditches, they make it hard to repair.”
Many residents on both roads were seen sorting, packing and loading their belongings to be taken to storage while they temporarily move.
Throughout the day, groups of people gathered around Goodman Elementary School, surveying the grounds in disbelief.
Second-grader Harley Traill was brought to tears by the state of her former classroom.
“My picture is still hanging on the wall, but everything is broken” she said, crying.
Her mother, Jennifer Traill, also attended the elementary school. She found herself shaken up at the sight of the building as well.
“I don’t know whether to cry or throw up,” Traill said.
On nearly every street corner shines a silver lining though. Motivated church members, youth groups and good Samaritans and set up free food stands for residents in need and law enforcement officers serving the community.
LEO and emergency responders from departments throughout the region were present, directing traffic and maintaining order, including McDonald County Sheriff’s Office, Noel Police Department and Newton County Emergency Management.
Various shelters and supply banks also have been formed. The Richmond Family is manning a storage unit of donated emergency supplies at City Hall. Those in need are encouraged to stop by and pick up necessities such as water, tarps, buckets, flashlights, blankets and hygiene bags. It’s a first-come, first-served basis.
Splitlog Baptist Church, west of town, has been designated as the Red Cross Shelter.
While this may be the first tornado to strike Goodman, many Southwest Missouri natives are no stranger to the twisting funnels.
The tornado that ravaged the town Tuesday evening was the most recent of five tornadoes 21-year-old Niko Russell has weathered.
Russell lives on Whitmore Street, in a home that fared the storm largely unscathed. He said he was napping when the tornado warning was issued, but he was quickly awakened by his frantic younger sister who urged him to take shelter in the bathroom.
Russell opted instead to take a closer look at the rotation from his front door.
“Then, that dead silence people talk about, it happened and in the distance you could just hear hushed wind,” he said.
It was then, as Russell found himself in the eye of the storm, he chose to move toward the bathroom. He made it to the dining room when a sound like a freight train surrounded him.
“And in all of five seconds, it was over,” Russell said.
As soon as the storm receded, he took to the streets to lend a helping hand. Russell and other residents of Whitmore worked late into the night clearing debris and tarping roofs.