ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) – Residents said they remain frustrated about how slow the recovery has been after the May 2025 tornado.
“It rained two to three weeks straight, it just rained in my house, I had like 3 inches of water upstairs,” recalled Carol Johnson. “It took me months and I’m still not over the fact that my house is in disarray.”
Johnson called out politicians during a luncheon on Wednesday for the lack of help.
St. Louis Mayor Cara Spencer said she saw videos of the home and the damage.
“Cities are not designed or equipped to repair private homes, and we’ve been working with FEMA programs to do a lot of that work and we’re gonna continue to do the best we can,” Spencer said.
Spencer has repeatedly expressed frustration with FEMA and what she calls changing rules from the federal government.
She said city leaders are working to address needs in north city. On Thursday, she plans to unveil how the city will use Rams settlement funds to help with tornado recovery.
Repairs of damaged buildings and demolition of unsafe structures are a big priority.
Longer-term plans to build new homes and develop the hard hit neighborhoods are still in the planning stages.
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