Two days after one of the worst tornadoes in St. Louis history pummeled much of the city’s North Side, Sarah St. James sat on her front porch on a bright sunny day and tried to make sense of her suddenly transformed world.
St. James, 91, still couldn’t believe she was among the living after an EF3 tornado smashed into her neighborhood a few blocks south of O’Fallon Park.
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“It was awesome,” St. James said in a low voice. “Really, really frightening. I can’t explain it in words. I was scared to death.”
The tornado inflicted its worst damage along a six-block stretch of Newstead Avenue at St. Louis Avenue, less than a quarter-mile to the southeast, flattening a row of houses and snapping big trees and utility poles like twigs.
But damage abounded in St. James’ neighborhood near the corner of Carter and Clarence avenues. Uprooted trees lay across several yards. Dense piles of severed tree limbs were stacked chest-high on both sides of her street. And hundreds of red bricks covered her next-door neighbor’s front yard after his roof collapsed
Meanwhile, water, electricity and phone service remained out for St. James and her neighbors. But she wasn’t complaining.
See more: St. Louis tornado relief and recovery: How to get and give help
Her dominant emotion was relief. The tornado had inflicted only cosmetic damage to her two-story brick home, so she had a place to stay the night. Volunteers were stopping by to check in on her and bring her food and water three times a day.
And, oh, yeah—did she mention she’s still alive?
“Yes, this is the first time in all my years that I’ve been a witness to anything like this,” she said. “But I’m still here. That’s enough.”
The EF3 tornado killed at least five people and damaged at least 4,400 structures in its path, with about 36,000 people still without power as of Monday morning, according to St. Louis city estimates.
Weather forecasters were predicting a band of storms would emerge west of St. Louis after 6 p.m. Monday, with the city likely on the receiving end of gusting wind, hail and even more tornadoes, though not at the scale and severity as Friday’s storm.
Hundreds of volunteers from across the metro St. Louis region and beyond began showing up hours after the tornado hit, turning the YMCA in O’Fallon Park into a massive collection and distribution center for food, water, diapers, clothing and other essentials.
Volunteers also fanned out across the stricken neighborhoods, performing wellness checks, moving tree branches from streets, and handing out bottled water and snacks at major intersections and in the parking lots of shuttered businesses.
But for survivors like Kristen Bigogno, big questions remained. With little money of her own, and the roof of the apartment blown off, Bigogno as of Sunday said she had no clue where she would be living in the days ahead—decisions complicated by the fact she cares for a bulldog mastiff named Athena and eight cats.
“It’s horrible,” Bigogno said Sunday afternoon. “I don’t know where I’m going to go.”
Memories of the tornado hitting her house Friday afternoon still haunt her, she said.
“It was scary,” she said. “I watched the roof give in. The whole building shook.”
Despite the tough times, Bigogno still acknowledged a feeling of optimism.
“All the people who showed up absolutely gave me hope,” she said, referring to the many volunteers who came through her neighborhood. “I thought we’d all be forgotten about.”
Yet despite the presence of so much destruction, so much pain and sorrow, a refreshment station set up by the Legendary Ladies Social Club offered music, laughter and joy on Sunday afternoon.
Karen Gulley set up the refreshment station near the corner of Newstead and Greer avenues, where she and her fellow Legendary Ladies handed out water, chips and welcoming smiles.
“We just came out and wanted to do something,” Gulley said. “We started with a little and people have been graciously stopping by.”
Much of the group’s work involves visiting local nursing homes, where electricity remains off, to get residents needed food and water, Gulley said.
As for the neighborhood, Gulley predicted it would come back.
“There are a lot of elderly, a lot of homeowners who are not going anywhere,” she said. “We’re going to make it.”
