People throughout the region assessed the damage Saturday morning from overnight storms that brought tornadoes and intense thunderstorms.
There were six storm-related deaths in Wayne County, two in Ozark County and one apiece in Jefferson and Butler counties, according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
A woman was found dead early Saturday near electrical lines behind her Florissant home, the St. Louis County Police Department said.
As many as 19 tornadoes may have hit Missouri, according to Gov. Mike Kehoe’s office.
National Weather Service personnel expect to spend several days inspecting damage and confirming that tornadoes hit specific areas. As of Sunday morning the NWS confirmed that a tornado landed in Villa Ridge and traveled northeast of Fox Creek; another traveled from Hillsboro to Arnold; and another struck south of Union, in Franklin County. Eye witnesses also reported a tornado in Rolla.
Residents and officials reported widespread property damage from high winds and blowing debris. The hardest-hit areas in St. Louis County were Black Jack, Bridgeton, Florissant and Hazelwood, said Michelle Ryan, director of St. Louis County’s Office of Emergency Management, in a Saturday morning briefing.
“There's more substantial damage from this [storm] than I've seen in my career,” Ryan said.
Tornadoes tore through Rolla, Villa Ridge and elsewhere, causing significant property damage and numerous street closings. There was likely a tornado in Chesterfield, said Ryan.
Many affected people got their first assessment of the damage early Saturday morning. In Rolla, Shaun Wibbenmeyer looked past police tape at the shell of the nearly destroyed building that had housed the fitness training center he planned to open on Monday.
“We were motivated, geared up and ready to launch Monday. In a heartbeat, it was taken,” Wibbenmeyer said. “But God has a plan, and this wasn’t it.”
Several nearby buildings were also destroyed and entire strip malls sat in rubble. Rolla Public Schools reported significant damage to the middle school and two elementary schools.
Officials in Arnold, Missouri, reported major structural damage to multiple buildings, including homes. Purina Farms in Gray Summit and Creve Coeur Park Soccer Complex are among the many facilities also reporting significant damage.
First responders worked late into the night to extinguish brush fires in Ferguson, Creve Coeur, Black Jack, Chesterfield, Bellefontaine Neighbors, Belleville and elsewhere.
“Small grass fires turned into large grass fires, some of those large grass fires turned into structure fires and events cascaded to where local fire resources were overwhelmed,” Black Jack Fire Protection District Chief Roger Ellison said at the briefing. Officials received reports of building collapses, Ellison added.
Emergency crews started working early Saturday to assess the damage and remove downed power lines and trees. Ameren reported that 103,377 of its Missouri customers and 30,934 of its Illinois customers were without power as of Saturday morning.
The National Weather Service issued tornado warnings Friday night in Phelps, Pulaski, Maries, Franklin, St. Charles, St. Louis, Warren, Jefferson, Washington and Lincoln counties in Missouri and Macoupin, Madison, Calhoun, Jersey, St. Clair, Bond, Clinton, Madison, Washington and Monroe counties in Illinois. The weather service also issued a tornado warning for the city of St. Louis.
“There were fire services coming to aid each other, law enforcement coming to aid each other,” St. Louis County Executive Sam Page said, “and our residents played their important role in taking shelter and minimizing the impact of this storm — which is worse than we've seen in a really, really long time.”
Damage in St. Louis was minimal, according to officials. The St. Patrick’s Day run and parade scheduled for downtown on Saturday was due to proceed. MetroBus and MetroLink are running most routes, but officials predict delays. Several bus lines in north county were rerouted due to roadway obstructions.
This story has been updated.
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