Mercy Hospital Joplin

Mercy Hospital Joplin, formerly known as St. John's Regional Medical Center, is a hospital in Joplin, Missouri, USA. The hospital is famous for suffering devastating damage in the 2011 Joplin tornado. That storm-ravaged building was demolished in 2013. Following a succession of temporary structures, the hospital reopened in a new location in 2015.HistoryThe hospital was founded on October 24, 1896, by the Appoline A. Blair. The facility was expanded in 1968 to include two connecting buildings of seven and nine floors.On May 22, 2011, the hospital was seriously damaged by a tornado from the May 2011 tornado outbreak. At least four people were killed inside the hospital and its grounds, and surviving patients were evacuated from the health facility, which sustained major structural damage. One of the hospital's towers took a direct hit by the storm and was rotated four inches on its foundation. In the immediate aftermath, the Missouri National Guard established a field hospital at Joplin Memorial Hall.Mere hours after one of the deadliest recorded tornadoes in U.S. history hit Joplin, the Missouri Medical Assistance Team (DMAT) started working to create a plan to help the survivors. The following Wednesday, DMAT deployed their 8,000 square foot field hospital to temporarily replace the destroyed hospital. Six days after the tornado, on May 29, 2011 St. John's medical staff gave medical treatment to their community in the BLU-MED field hospital. This temporary hospital is now the home of the Kansas City University-Joplin School of Osteopathy.