Joplin Tornado brings back memories

by Stanley Leary
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I started my career in the 80s, and one of the first disasters I saw and covered for my college paper was an F4 tornado. There were 16 deaths and 153 injuries. The tornado was up to 3/4 mile wide. Portions of East Carolina University were severely damaged. 300 homes were leveled, most in Greenville, NC. My good friend Jesse Riggs lost family members that night.

No matter how many times you see disasters, each time I feel a numbness come over me for the loss of life and property.  I’m sad for those who have to rebuild their lives.


On November 10, 2002, a tornado destroyed 50 homes. At least seven people were killed in the Morgan County community of Mossy Grove in eastern Tennessee. I took this photo looking for a broader view up the mountain.
The tornado cut a swath about a mile wide and a mile long.  The hard part of covering these disasters is showing items that convey scale and what was destroyed.  Here, I wanted to show the overturned cars for scale and what happened.
What always amazes me is how quickly the national media covers these events.
NBC News reporter Robert Hager covering a tornado disaster. Over the years, I’ve noticed that the national media always takes the time, even in a disaster, to get the best lighting for a shot. Notice the hair light above the reporter in addition to the main light.  This helped separate the reporter from the early-dawn background.
Just hours before a tornado destroyed this community
The national media all find similar angles to show the destruction to their viewers.  Here you can see three networks lined up for their early-morning news shows.  I chose to shoot this to show a nation mourning its people.

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