Home Depot employees honored for saving lives during tornado

Four Home Depot employees, including one, Dean Wells, who did not survive, were honored today at the company's annual meeting in Atlanta:

The four employees -- Jason Smith, Joe Barbosa and Joe Cabalero and Wells -- listened to weather radios, manned doors and swept the store looking for shoppers who needed shelter. Wells was killed, Blake said, when he saw a man and two children outside the store on his final sweep and tried to get them inside.


Steve Cope, the Joplin store manager who was off duty when the May 22 tornado hit, drove to the store as soon as the tornado passed and was overwhelmed by what he saw.

"It was very emotional," said Cope, who accepted an award on Wells' behalf. "I lost it. The building was gone."

Home Depot has announced it will rebuild the Joplin store.