Now that the demolition of tornado-damaged structures is well underway, city officials want to be sure residential property owners understand one important detail: Demolition may still apply to you!

"It's easy to think that demolition only means tearing down wrecked houses," said Joplin City Manager Mark Rohr. "But if you have any concrete on your property such as slabs, basements, footings, crawl spaces or driveways that aren't going to be reused; we need you to get that removed now as well. There are more than a thousand lots still out there that have some type of foundation or concrete left behind and we've got to get these lots cleared, if applicable, so that rebuilding in these areas can move forward."

The good news - especially for those who do not yet have a clean lot - is that there is free help to get even heavy, bulky concrete removed, Rohr added. Residents can enlist the help of a Voluntary Organization Demolition Team (VODT) to remove structures and/or concrete at no cost to the property owner. Residents will be required to sign a Right-of-Entry (ROE) form to allow the voluntary agency access to their property. Any ROE that has been previously signed - like for debris removal - is not valid for this phase.

To take advantage of the help from a VODT, residents can call the Volunteer Reception Center at (417) 625-3558 from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. These teams are led by skilled volunteers from organizations that specialize in helping disaster survivors.

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