Community Corner

Updated: Tornado Demolishes Parts of Hazelwood, Gov. Nixon Tours Damage From EF2 Twister

Authorities have confirmed a tornado in Hazelwood Wednesday evening and officials are just now assessing the damage.

Authorities confirmed a tornado in Hazelwood Wednesday night and officials are now assessing the damage while emergency crews tend to downed power lines and overturned cars.

The National Weather Service estimated the force of the tornado that devastated Hazelwood and barrelled through Florissant at 115 to 125 mph, rating it an EF-2. That tornado was its strongest in Hazelwood on Woodcrest Lane and at Howdershell Road and Lynn Haven Lane . North Hanley also experienced extensive outages that extended into Saturday morning near Latty Avenue.

The weather service also confirmed three tornadoes hit the region Wednesday night. The tornado that touched Hazelwood had seven-mile path through Bridgeton, Hazelwood and Florissant, running west and north of I-270. A smaller tornado hit south of the Hill and damaged buildings along a 0.3-mile path. The third ripped trees on a 1.5-mile path along the Missouri River, near St. Albans.

Find out what's happening in Hazelwoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon toured the area Thursday afternoon and spoke to the media afterwards, saying the state stood ready to help where needed. 

"Homes were destroyed and lives were changed forever," Nixon said after seeing the damage first-hand.

Find out what's happening in Hazelwoodwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

The St. Louis County Office of Emergency Management says at least 24 residential structures have suffered major damage because of the storm and crews are still canvassing the area for further damage.

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Hazelwood Mayor Matthew Robinson said the effects of the tornado were "pretty devastating." Crews worked overnight to clear major debris from roads and are now working with homeowners to repair home damage. 

Some homes were beyond repair, including four apartment buildings in Teson Gardens. Those four buildings had the roofs blown off. 

Late Thursday morning, an Ameren worker was pronounced dead after he was electrocuted while working to repair a power line in St. Ann. 

Another man was critically injured after he fell from the Interstate 170 bridge over Nyflot Avenue bridge. See: Man Found Unconscious Under Highway Bridge in Hazelwood. Police said the man was probably blown over the railing by strong winds after he got out of his car.

The man, was taken to DePaul Health Center, where he was listed Friday in critical condition. Livingston said there still were still strong winds in the area when the man fell about 9:50 p.m.

And, a man whose car flipped over during the tornado is alive. Hazelwood spokesman Tim Davidson said he sustained a broken leg.

Still, the St. Louis County Office of Emergency Management was reminding residents to not touch downed wires.

Robinson said a two-mile radius surrounding the Howdershell and Lynn Haven intersection were the most heavily damaged. 

The American Red Cross in partnership with the City of Hazelwood continues to man a 24-hour relief and aid center at Hazelwood Civic Center East. Staff and volunteers are providing food, shelter and emotional support to residents in need.

“This shelter will remain open as long as there is a need,” said Mary Anderson, Regional Director of Disaster Services.

Throughout the past two nights, the Red Cross reports about a dozen local residents have spent the night. Thursday night, the organization served dinner to about 100 people in the shelter.  

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Ameren Missouri and Laclede Gas are both on the scene tending to their respective issues. As many as half of Hazelwood's resident's are still reportedly without power.

Meanwhile, the Hazelwood School District (HSD) announced it will provide daycare services for district families affected by the storm. The daycare services will be provided at the Galactic/Early Childhood Center (15955 New Halls Ferry Rd.) in Florissant.

There, the district says, Hazelwood teachers will be onsite to supervise the children and talk to them if needed. Head to the district's Facebook page for more information or call 314-953-4950. 

HSD also canceled class for students that attend six schools within Hazelwood city limits. The entire district was out of school Thursday, due to power outages in North County. Hazelwood West High School, Hazelwood West Middle School, McNair Elementary, Russell Elementary, Armstrong Elementary and Hazelwood West Early Childhood Center are all closed Friday. After school activities are also canceled. Diana Gulotta, HSD's assistant superintendent for communication, said the main issues are power and access. All other schools will have class on Friday including Garrett Elementary school, the only HSD school in the City of Hazelwood not closed.

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Emergency crews were on the scene redirecting traffic on Howdershell Road near the Hazelwood West High School area, where crews set up a triage area and a majority of the damage is being reported.

KSDK reported only minor injuries in Hazelwood, but significant damage to homes.

KMOV reported multiple buildings had collapsed near the Howdershell and Lynn Haven intersection around 8:02 p.m. The news outlet also reported a pedestrian being hit with a tree.

Patch editor Candace Jarrett reported this on Facebook: "I was just in a tornado. Trees everywhere on Howdershell and Lynn Haven a car flipped over and I'm stuck on Dollar General's parking lot due to live wire."

  • RELATED: Short video clip from Howdershell and Lynn Haven

St. Louis County Police Chief Tim Fitch tweeted shortly after 9 p.m. from the county's 911 center that the department was handling Hazelwood's 911 calls and was sending county officers to assist there.

All available firefighters out of St. Charles County were called to Hazelwood for tornado response and multiple accidents have been reported on the city's major roadways. 

The Salvation Army is headed to Hazelwood right now and a staging area has been set up at Armstrong Elementary for emergency vehicles.

St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay tweeted, "Our thoughts are with the residents of Hazelwood."

Hazelwood School District called school off for Thursday. Sports fields at Hazelwood West High School suffered damaged, including a collapsed baseball dugout.

Meanwhile, about 12,000 residents in the area—zip codes 63042 and 63031—are without power, according to Ameren's outage map.

Due to a lack of power at area schools, Hazelwood School District has canceled Thursday classes. Per its Facebook page:

"Due to power outages and storm damage, HSD will not have classes tomorrow April 11. After school and evening activities are cancelled."

And Missouri Governor Jay Nixon has declared a state of emergency in Missouri. 

"This was a strong system of storms that caused damage to communities in several areas of our state," Nixon said in a release. "We will continue to work closely with local officials to assess damages and provide any needed assistance."

Stay with Hazelwood Patch for the latest news from Wednesday's tornado. 


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