Joplin pauses to remember a policeman from the Kansas City suburb of Riverside who died while searching for tornado victims.   Officer Jeff Taylor was mortally injured the day after the tornado as he searched in a rainstorm for victims and a bolt of lightning hit the ground beside him.  He died about ten days later. Governor Nixon, paid tribute at the service to Taylor and all others who put themselves at risk to serve the public.

AUDIO: Governor Nixon speaks at service   6 min

Te Joplin Police Department has placed a plaque and a picture of Taylor on its wall of honor, which memorializes officers killed in the line of duty in Joplin. The department also has presented the Taylor family with the Joplin Police Medal of Honor.

Taylor, who grew up in nearby Webb City, is survived by his widow and two sons who are three and five years old.