JOPLIN, Mo. - Moments after a deadly tornado slammed into Joplin, Mo., the staff of the local newspaper went to work, taking photos and collecting stories from a community turned into a war zone.
A tornado hit this Southwest Missouri head-on at 5:30 p.m. Sunday. The storm damaged or destroyed as much as a third of Joplin, including its high school and a regional hospital.
As of Monday afternoon, officials reported 89 people killed in the storm.
Joplin Globe employees began reporting for work minutes after the tornado hit, said publisher Michael Beatty. The newsroom remade Monday morning's edition, which went to press about an hour late.
"It was amazing. These people came in who had lost their homes completely," said Beatty. "But they were just dedicated to their jobs, to getting the story out."
Beatty said 26 Globe employees took heavy damage to their homes or lost them completely. Most Globe employees and their families are reported safe; the newspaper has not made contact with one member of its staff.
About 117 people work for the Globe.
Several dozen people - journalists, production crews, pressmen, circulation staff and managers - reported for work Sunday night, he said. Beatty said 81 of 91 carrier contractors showed up to deliver the newspaper.
"I couldn't be more proud of our people," said Beatty. "Their focus was just to get the news out for the people, in print and online, so that they would have the information they needed about where to go and what to do."
The Globe is owned by Community Newspaper Holdings Inc. of Birmingham, Ala.
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