Page 4 - John Ness News Today

>> this is the new tower, this is the original hospital. >> reporter: two days later, for jim risko, its all sinking in. >> my hearts broken because my mom and dad died here, my son was born here. i have so many memories of working with the other doctors and the nurses. this is home. i mean, st. johns is more than a building. its a spirit. >> st. johns and the national guard are opening a temporary field hospital with 60 beds. its across from the destroyed building. why are we seeing so many p...

Everything through it to get people out. >> reporter: they wheeled thinks grandmother out of the hospital and flagged down a passing car to drive them home. >> there was no crying, there was no screaming. >> reporter: the st. john staff kept working, laser focused on their patients. >> we did what we had to do. and we all stayed, even though people were worried about their families. >> im just a very short period of time we were able to evacuate over 200 patients to a safer parking lot and then ...

>> reporter: if the worst happens. >> oh, my gosh. >> reporter: and the hospital is at the center of the storm. >> oh, no. its the hospital! >> reporter: st. johns hospital, joplin, missouri, the biggest hospital for miles around. >> st. johns is a 230-bed acute care hospital. >> reporter: jim risko has been an er doc at st. johns for the past seven years. >> this is a very sophisticated hospital in a relatively small town. >> i was down the road playing horseshoes with my friends. >> reporter: ...

I came back, walked home and came back later that night about midnight to see if my car, which was just completely trashed in the parking lot and see if there was anything left in it worth anything and theres not. >> that was the car you were going to drive home in. >> thats the car. oh, its just crushed down. its just -- mean, the roof is completely crushed in. its just really bad. when we got there, we talk with people and some guards that were there and i brought my son with me and we were wa...

Storm. >> every time i hear a bang or boom or something, i jump. which i never was that -- like that. it scares me. >> reporter: ness counts his blessings. >> if it wasnt for the lord, i wouldnt here. like i said, sunday morning i got saved. sunday night i got blowed away. >> reporter: he has high praise for the red cross and its tireless volunteers. >> walk a little bit and keep your legs moving. >> reporter: hes tending to those in need even as he struggles with staggering losses in his own li...

>> john, give me an idea of what it was like inside that cooler. were people screaming? were they scared? were they calm? >> people were screaming, people were praying, people were crying. i know it seemed like everybody was holding on to everybody. i believe it was everybodys efforts. the employees as well as the customers who were holding onto and keeping each other from any more possibility of being hurt or injured. >> can i ask both of you -- >> at a certain point -- >> yes, go ahead, rick. ...

And so we just all jumped in the cooler. its pretty small, so everyone was pretty tight, you know. everyone was getting kind of crushed. there was broken glass everywhere. >> the dillon supermarket in joplin was one of the major businesses that took a direct hit from last sundays tornado. assistant manager john and customer rick morgan were both in the store as the storm approached. they join us now. i believe its the first time youve seen each other since last sunday. fy have this right, that i...

that is a monster tornado. >> reporter: battle hardened storm chasers in awe of natures power. >> oh, my gosh. this is awful. dude, the trees. the trees are debarked! >> reporter: residents running for cover anywhere they could. >> in a crowded convenience store some 20 people hunkering down in a darkened commercial refrigerator. >> can we go in the cooler? [ screaming ] >> go! >> oh, dear heaven. >> god! >> reporter: at the same time a security camera in a nearby frozen yogurt shop ca...

>> reporter: battle hardened storm chasers in awe of natures power. >> oh, my gosh. this is awful. dude, the trees. the trees are debarked! >> reporter: residents running for cover anywhere they could. >> in a crowded convenience store some 20 people hunkering down in a darkened commercial refrigerator. >> can we go in the cooler? [ screaming ] >> go! >> oh, dear heaven. >> god! >> reporter: at the same time a security camera in a nearby frozen yogurt shop catches the chaos. workers mo...

Blackened. the top of the roof was gone. the doors to the emergency room were blown open. >> reporter: now, the newly wounded flooded into the hospital. >> they began running through and jumping over tables, through our e.r. doors that had busted open. many were bleeding profusely. immediately when i started seeing them, all fear is gone for myself. i mean, those patients needed us. >> reporter: as the injured flooded to the hospital for care, mcdaniel was desperately trying to get his grandmoth...