70 Years Ago, Missouri Twister Destroys Everything but Bank Vault

The trouble actually began the day before, but this marks the 72nd anniversary of a severe tornado event that was so terrible that it destroyed everything in one Missouri town except for a church and a bank vault.

It was March 21 and March 22, 1952 when the United States experienced one of the worst tornado outbreaks in history. Missouri was at the center of a storm system that dropped an incredible 8 EF-4 twisters. It began late on March 21, but hit Missouri towns early on March 22, 1952.

One of the EF-4 tornadoes annihilated one Missouri town to the point where all that remained was a bank vault.

There was also one church in what was known then as Dyer, Missouri in that area that was damaged, but survived and ended up being a rallying point for the community to rescue and give shelter to survivors.

The tornado that clobbered that small Missouri place was one of the 8 EF-4 tornadoes that was on the ground for 31 miles and was responsible for more than 25 deaths and hundreds of injuries. It did what is now estimated as $1.5 million dollars in damage.

A total of 209 lives were lost across all the states including Arkansas that were hit by those terrible twisters. It was the worst tornadic event in America since the tri-state tornado of 1925.

This was during the time when there was little in the way of tornado warnings. Imagine seeing the sky darken and see monsters like this coming through the tree lines? Terrifying.