On this episode of Our American Stories, on May 22, 2011, an EF-5 tornado tore through Joplin, Missouri, killing 162 people and becoming the deadliest and costliest tornado in modern American history. As the storm approached, local meteorologist Jerimiah Cook realized the tornado was heading directly toward his hometown, his friends, and even his own pregnant wife.

Jerimiah Cook and reporter Gretchen Bolander share the story of that devastating evening, the chaos that followed, and the remarkable recovery that transformed Joplin in the years afterward for the better.

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