ST. LOUIS — In the month following the May 16 tornado that tore through Saint Louis, impacted the tens of thousands of residents and killed five people, Gov. Mike Kehoe commended state, local and volunteer groups assisting in recovery efforts.
Below are some of the relief efforts mentioned in a statement from the governor:
The Missouri Task Force 1 (MO-TF1) searched and evaluated more than 2,150 structures, using state-of-the-art technology.
At least 512 homes were destroyed, 1,321 homes sustained major damage and 195 homes had minor damage, which totaled approximately $17 million in expected FEMA and State of Missouri assistance to home homeowners and renters.
From across the state, more than 100 volunteer engineers, architects and building officials spent a combined 3,000 hours helping St. Louis inspectors evaluate 6,748 structures.
Approximately 2,136 of the structures were deemed unsafe and 1,529 were deemed restricted due to extensive damage.
The American Red Cross initially opened 21 shelters, which helped 453 individuals. The organization currently has four shelters open where a total of 148 people are staying, according to Sharon Watson, regional communications director.
The shelters are located at Crossroads College Preparatory School, Ferguson Nazarene Church, Peter and Paul Community Services (Garfield Building) and Urban League Peter Bunce Campus.
The Missouri National Guard helped the city and residents remove the equivalent of more than 200 football fields of debris, which were piled one-foot high.
A variety of nonprofits have provided more than 285,000 hot meals. The St. Louis Area Food Bank has distributed more than 350,000 lbs of food to organizations providing meals to storm victims.
The Food Bank also is providing the community with 500 food, water and hygiene kits every week in affected areas.
The Urban League has donated more than 7,000 box meals to storm victims.
The Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development (DHEWD) has dedicated $750,000 in federal workforce funds to provide temporary wages to eligible people interested in helping with storm cleanup in St. Louis and southeast Missouri.
The Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations has updated the state’s unemployment claims application to allow for filing of claims for disaster unemployment assistance benefits. Claims have already been received. Applications are being accepted through Aug. 8.
A multi-agency warehouse by Adventist Community Services Disaster Relief opened June 8 to support long-term recovery operations. The warehouse sent out its first truckload of donated supplies for distribution on June 13.
The Disaster Assistance Center (DAC) opened June 9 at Chaifetz Arena. It provides a one-stop-shop for storm victims to receive financial assistance, referrals, emergency supplies and information.
The DAC helped 1,276 households, reaching 3,325 family members in its first four days of operation.
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) sent more than 20 pallets of PPE and supplies to the St. Louis region, including 207,658 goggle, N95 masks, protective coveralls, gloves, disinfectant wipes and hand sanitizer.
DHSS also facilitated the quick deployment of meals to affected senior living sites and allowed pharmacists to fill controlled substance prescriptions for storm victims without a written prescription when deemed necessary.