Obama consoles victim of Joplin tornado

Face to face with the legions of homeless and the bereaved, President Obama on Sunday toured the apocalyptic landscape left by Missouri's killer tornado, consoled the community and committed the government to helping rebuild shattered lives.

"We're not going to stop until Joplin's back on its feet," Obama promised.

A memorial service where Obama spoke punctuated a day of remembrance one week after the disaster, as authorities pressed on with the task of identifying the victims, and volunteers combed through wreckage of neighborhoods where nothing was left whole.

The service erupted in cheers when Obama said, "I promise you your country will be there with you every single step of the way," a pledge he extended to all parts of the nation raked by violent storms this season.

The Joplin tornado was the worst to hit the United States in decades, leaving more than 120 dead and hundreds more injured. At least 40 people remain unaccounted for.

Air Force One flew over a massive swath of destruction - a land of flattened houses and stripped trees - on its approach to Joplin. On the ground, the devastation was even more stark and complete. Obama confronted painful sights at every turn and said nothing in his life measured up to what he saw this day.

The crowd of hundreds at the service reflected a community in the midst of rebuilding: people in shorts and baseball caps, and plenty of babies who occasionally burst out crying.

Obama received a notably warm reception in this conservative part of Missouri. His remarks were tailored for a religious service, with quotes from scripture, references to the love that binds people to each other, and comments on the essential goodness of humanity.

The stories of the storm lead us to "put aside our petty grievances," the president said. "There are heroes all around us, all the time. So, in the wake of this tragedy, let us live up to their example: to make each day count."

[Source : sfgate.com]