William B. Cassidy | May 23, 2011 2:37PM EDT
UPDATED 4:30 pm. EST
Major highways around Joplin were open Monday following a deadly tornado that killed at least 90 people and left a large section of the Missouri city in ruins.
Interstate 44 was temporarily shut down but reopened. U.S. 71, a north-south route, was open as well. Within the city, however, many local roads were closed.
The tornado that struck Sunday evening destroyed more than 2,000 buildings, damaging about a third of the city, a trucking hub in southwestern Missouri.
Roads into many heavily damaged areas were blocked Monday, according to news reports, as rescuers searched through the wreckage for injured survivors.
Con-way Truckload’s headquarters, which were on the edge of the tornado’s path, were damaged but functioning Monday. The company employs 500 people in Joplin.
Con-way did not report any deaths or injuries. It is still contacting employees.
A Flying J truck stop on Interstate 44 was severely damaged. The tornado flipped several tractor-trailers at the truck stop, though no injuries were reported.
Other motor carriers and truck stops in the area weren’t in the storm’s path and avoided damage. One carrier, R&R Trucking, is helping relief efforts.
The military hauler is loading a trailer with donated relief supplies and trucking them to nearby Joplin, according to the Greene County Daily World.
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2:30 pm. EST
More than 450 people have been killed by tornadoes this spring, including more than 340 people killed by storms that hit Alabama and Mississippi April 26-27.
Con-way Truckload is up and running a day after a deadly tornado swept through Joplin, Mo., killing at least 90 people and destroying a large swathe of the city.
The company was still contacting employees affected by the monster storm, and had no reports of deaths or injuries, Con-way said in a statement Monday.
Con-way Truckload has about 500 employees in Joplin.
The tornado blew out windows in the carrier’s headquarters, which was on the edge of the tornado’s path. A maintenance building was seriously damaged.
The tornado damaged or destroyed about 30 mostly empty trailers and two tractors, Con-way said.
The carrier was conducting “business as normal” at its primary operations center, which was running on emergency backup generator power on Monday.
The carrier was accepting orders and dispatching trucks, communicating with drivers and customers as it sought more information on area employees.
“We are hopeful that as more employees continue to check in we will be able to update the status of our people and their homes,” the company said.
Contact William B. Cassidy at wcassidy@joc.com.
