A success story is emerging from the mile-wide stretch of rubble caused by an F5 tornado that struck Joplin, Mo., the night of May 22. While it was hard to know it at the time, rebuilding the city began almost immediately.
David Sarrett and his wife, Sherree, own the Medicine Shoppe Pharmacy in Joplin and their building was completely destroyed by the storm. Like many, within hours of the storm, the Starretts began taking steps to salvage what they could. With the help of friends, neighbors, all levels of government and their insurance company, Pharmacists Mutual Insurance Co., the Starretts were able to open for business 6 days later in a new location. This is a testament to how this community worked together to help a local business recover.
Today the landscape of Joplin is very different than it was just a few months ago. Within 60 days of the storm, insurers poured more than $745 million into Joplin and will pay more than $2 billion in claims for residential, personal and commercial property damage.
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