A powerful and deadly tornado tore nearly 23 miles through the St. Louis region on May 16, 2025.
St. Louis Public Radio spent a year on the ground listening to the experiences of residents, detailing community relief efforts and reporting how city, state and federal authorities planned to lead St. Louis' recovery.
This series, "Torn," documents a year of our community's successes and failures — and what it meant for the storm to cause the most damage in north St. Louis.
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Brian Munoz / St. Louis Public Radio
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Source: Brian Munoz, Lylee Gibbs and Kyle Pyatt
A year after the May 16 tornado severely damaged north St. Louis, new reporting shows how inexperience and decisions in Mayor Cara Spencer’s administration slowed the tornado recovery.
Andrea Y. Henderson
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St. Louis Public Radio
Kyle Pyatt
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Special to St. Louis Public Radio
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Friends and family reflected on a year without their beloved Patricia Penelton on April 30 as they returned to the Eden Theological Seminary to tend to a garden that was dedicated to the longtime community servant. -
As the months continue on without relief a year after the May 16 tornado, some Black homeowners are toying with the idea of renting forever instead of buying another home, which could further widen the city’s homeownership gap. -
The May 16 tornado revealed long-standing cracks in St. Louis government that made it harder to respond to the deadly storm. Here are five ways the city could be better prepared for the next storm. -
Days after an EF3 tornado ripped the roof from her family’s home, Gloria Nolan has shared her family’s recovery journey with “St. Louis on the Air.” She and her husband, Kevin, share a hopeful update. -
Three displaced St. Louisans share their stories of devastation, slow recovery and finding community in the aftermath a year after the May 16 tornado. -
St. Louis Public Radio documented a group of volunteers in the Academy neighborhood working to recover from the May 16 tornado over the past year. The members say they’ve lost hope in the city but not in their neighbors. -
When a storm damaged thousands of homes on May 16, 2025, it accelerated a growing vacancy problem in the city’s predominantly Black neighborhoods driven by decades of redlining, disinvestment and white flight. -
St. Louis Public Radio spent the past year reporting on the experience of tornado-impacted residents, the glacial pace of recovery and what the city needs to do to be ready for the next storm. -
Mayor Cara Spencer sat down with St. Louis Public Radio to discuss the findings of a monthslong investigation into the City Hall tornado response that found inexperience and hesitation have slowed recovery efforts. The mayor defended the city's work on the recovery while acknowledging some of the shortcomings and the challenges that lie ahead.
Looking back
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Lara Hamdan/St. Louis Public RadioA Friday afternoon storm left a wake of damage from Clayton to north St. Louis. -
Cristina Fletes-Mach/Cristina Fletes-Mach / St. Louis Public Radio"It literally had looked like a bomb had just went off," one volunteer said of the tornado's damage in north St. Louis. "Blocks and blocks of homes that are just gone." -
Kyle Pyatt/Special to St. Louis Public RadioWhen a tornado struck Centennial Christian Church on May 16, three people were trapped inside under debris. Their emergency calls went unanswered. -
Cristina Fletes-Mach/St. Louis Public RadioThe external report places most of the blame on City Emergency Management Agency Commissioner Sarah Russell, who was put on leave May 20. -
Brian Munoz/St. Louis Public RadioWe walked and drove the storm’s path from Clayton to the Mississippi and found despair in some neighborhoods and others nearly fully recovered. -
Cristina Fletes-Mach/St. Louis Public RadioNearly nine months later, St. Louis programs aimed to help people impacted by the May 16 tornado are only getting started. City officials say they struggled to get the aid programs running. -
Kate Grumke/St. Louis Public RadioSix months after the May 16 tornado ripped through north St. Louis, people who had insurance policies are struggling to repair their homes. Some say their insurance companies aren’t making it easier. -
Kyle Pyatt/Special to St. Louis Public RadioSt. Louis’ emergency management agency is still cash-strapped, understaffed months after the tornadoThe City Emergency Management Agency has been underfunded and understaffed for years, its commissioner said, which has hampered the city’s ability to respond effectively to disasters like the May 16 tornado. -
William DeShazer/Special to St. Louis Public RadioThe EF3 storm was one of 10 that touched down across Tennessee during an early March 2020 outbreak. One of the hardest-hit areas in its 60-mile path across Nashville and neighboring counties was North Nashville, the historic heart of the city’s Black community and an area similar to parts of St. Louis devastated by the May tornado.
Ongoing reporting
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Leaders of the Fountain Park neighborhood church say the FEMA grant will only partially pay for rebuilding. -
As the Board of Aldermen makes final decisions on Rams settlement funds, members consider possible oversight of Mayor Cara Spencer’s Recovery Office. -
Tempers flared at hearing on $230 million Rams settlement bill residents say isn’t enough to help tornado-impacted neighborhoods in north St. Louis. -
Residents of tornado-affected neighborhoods of north St. Louis say the city needs to allocate more of the Rams settlement toward recovery instead of downtown. -
More than a year after the May 16 tornado hit north St. Louis, $10 million worth of state funds will help tear down FEMA-ineligible buildings. -
The nonprofit created the fund, dubbed the Northside Resilience Fund, to fill the gap as residents waited for relief from insurance companies, the Federal Emergency Management Agency and other avenues. -
A High Ridge contractor is accused by the state of defrauding north St. Louis residents seeking repair work after last year's tornado.
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The Board of Aldermen’s Housing, Urban Development and Zoning Committee heard public comment Tuesday on a bill that would allocate $230 million of the money. -
Contractors are slated to demolish hundreds of homes damaged or destroyed by the May 2025 tornado in the coming months. Residents are in for a dusty summer, and experts say neighbors should take precautions to keep their lungs healthy. -
The Julia Davis and Cabanne branches received yearlong repairs for fallen ceilings and water damage.
