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132 now dead, 156 unaccounted for in Joplin, 4,000 jobs affected by tornado

Members of Missouri Rescue Task Force 1 walk the streets of Joplin, Missouri looking for survivors after a tornado destruction on May 23.
(UPI/Tom Uhlenbrock)
Members of Missouri Rescue Task Force 1 walk the streets of Joplin, Missouri looking for survivors after a tornado destruction on May 23.

The state of Missouri says the number of people missing or unaccounted for since the Joplin tornado is now at 156.

Missouri Department of Public Safety deputy director Andrea Spillars said Friday that officials are working 24 hours a day to trimthe list that stood at 232 a day earlier.

Here is a link to the updated list of those unaccounted for.

Spillars says at least 90 people on the original list have been located alive. But some new names also have been added and at least six have been identified as among the dead.

A city spokeswoman told The Associated Press earlier Friday that the death toll had risen to 132.

The Joplin Chamber of Commerce says the city's business community suffered a tremendous blow following the tornado.

Chamber president Rob O'Brian says at least 300 businesses and 4,000 jobs have been affected by the tornado.

And he says that count could rise.

One of the city's largest employers, St. John's Hospital, was destroyed. But hospital officials have vowed to rebuild and said they are committed to retaining the hospital's 2,000 employees.

Home Depot and Wal-Mart, also large employers, say they will rebuild. Dillon's, which was also destroyed, has not made a commitment.

O'Brian told The Joplin Globe that the good news is the city still has 2,000 businesses and 50,000 people, so it has many resources left.