Almost 500,000 without power in St. Louis By JIM SALTER, Associated Press Writer
23 minutes ago
ST. LOUIS - Powerful storms left nearly half a million homes and businesses without power early Thursday as the region braced for another day of 100-degree heat.
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The summer storm that tore through the Midwest on Wednesday ripped off a section of airport roof and dumped it on an interstate, blew windows out of a hotel restaurant and baseball stadium press box and injured more than 30 people. At least three St. Louis-area buildings partially collapsed.
The city's light rail system, down for several hours, was running again by the Thursday morning rush hour, but at least 450,000 customers were still without power, according to utility company AmerenUE.
"This is one of the worst storms we can all remember to hit the city of St. Louis in recent years," St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay said.
Three people were injured when a residential building collapsed in a neighborhood south of downtown, said Police Chief Joe Mokwa. The historic Switzer building near the Mississippi River also partially collapsed, and the Mokwa said the department was still dealing with a backlog of emergency calls.
Many of the injuries were to baseball fans waiting for a St. Louis Cardinals-Atlanta Braves game at the new Busch Stadium.
Winds near 80 mph blew out press box windows and ripped the tarp, injuring at least 30 people, five of whom were taken to hospitals, said Norm Corley, a supervisor with Accu-Care, which handles medical issues at the stadium.
Downed power lines were everywhere as utility crews worked on repairs.
The loss of electricity to power air-conditioning raised fears for the health of residents, particularly the elderly. A brutal heat wave has settled over the region and high Thursday was expected to reach 102 degrees.
"It could be a very dangerous day," Mokwa said.
Ameren spokeswoman Susan Gallagher said the utility called in every worker, every available contractor, and even asked other utility companies to send crews to St. Louis.
"This is the worst damage in the history of the company," Gallagher said.
Mokwa said the winds tore about 60 feet of roof from the airport's main terminal and dumped it onto Interstate 70. At one point, rain and winds were so strong that motorists on Interstate 70 were forced to stop in the middle of driving lanes.
Patrons were evacuated at the rooftop restaurant at the downtown Millennium Hotel after winds blew out windows in the restaurant, which sits near the Gateway Arch.
Most of the serious damage was limited to the St. Louis area, but Przybylinski said wind damage was also reported throughout Illinois.
Topic: St. Louis got screwed. I'm glad I do not live there. (Read 1303 times)