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After the most powerful tornado to hit U.S. soil in eight years drilled its deadly path across Greensburg, Kan., the only business left standing was the concrete grain elevator belonging to the Southern Plains Cooperative.

The co-op has been the lifeblood of this farming community and a Nationwide Agribusiness customer for more than 20 years. While the dollar value of the claim isn’t near the industry’s largest, it could be the worst claim to ever happen in the co-op arena from a customer standpoint. According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, only one out of every five businesses ever recovers from a natural disaster.

"This is about more than just handing our customer a check. Southern Plains’ success is a vital component to this community’s comeback," said Brett Harman, president of Nationwide Agribusiness. "Our efforts are focused on getting them back in business immediately."

Right after the storm, Mark Whalen, a commercial claims specialist at Nationwide Agribusiness, maneuvered through National Guard checkpoints and piles of debris to get to the site. Like any first responder, he had to assess, evaluate and control what he could. Even in the middle of chaos, his experience allowed him to help business owners make the important decisions during those first critical hours after a disaster.

Whalen’s first concern was helping the Southern Plains manager and general manager quickly identify parts of the business that could be salvaged. The tornado blew the caps off the grain elevator, so taking care of wet grain became another priority as they worked to salvage inventory.

After helping them mitigate their losses and keep some of their operations running by using other locations, Whalen helped the co-op set up temporary offices and place ads in local newspapers to let their customers know they were still in business.

"We help them see a bigger picture," Whalen explained. "It’s overwhelming in those first days. There is so much going through their minds. We help them make sense of what has happened, but we also help control expenses by guiding them to cost effective alternatives."

It’s easy to see how overwhelming the ordeal can be. The first hours after the tornado hit were for search and rescue. Three of the co-op’s 14 employees lived in Greensburg and one of them was missing. The man was eventually found and is recovering.

With the crew safe, the next concerns were the 8,000-gallon propane and 26,000-gallon anhydrous tanks. Both were leaking. An area oil field supplier provided the equipment needed to close the two tanks. They then began securing the chemicals – fertilizer, pesticides and others – stored at the site.

The Nationwide Agribusiness home office in Des Moines, Iowa, assisted the co-op by researching values on fleet vehicles and quickly getting them an insurance check. They also helped find a local recycler and got undamaged inventory shipped to other co-op locations.

Through the coordinated efforts of Whalen and Collins, the co-op got a local trucking company to repair some of its 22 damaged vehicles, and a local dealership provided three pickups for the co-op to use in the interim.

Nationwide Agribusiness even hired co-op workers to help clean up the site so they would still have paychecks coming in on Fridays. Knowing the co-op’s employees were also dealing with great personal losses, Whalen offered crisis counseling services for those in need.

"This claim shows what a huge difference our large claims expertise can make. We’re able to see opportunities – things unique that others might not think about," Harman said. "We know enough about these catastrophic situations to find innovative solutions that help our customers stay ahead of the game."

Southern Plains was partially back in business just days after the disaster and is now getting ready for the wheat harvest season.

"Nationwide Agribusiness reacted fast and was able to assist me in quickly getting the Greensburg location back in business," said Ron Gruber, general manager of the co-op. "I was really pleased with Mark’s work. One person couldn’t have done all of this. This has truly been a team effort."

Caption: Nationwide Agribusiness claim adjuster Mark Whalen (left) discusses damages with Southern Plains Co-op manager Danny McLarty. Photo courtesy Nationwide