At least 7 people dead and widespread damage left in the wake of severe
Midwest storms
[May 17, 2025]
By MICHAEL PHILLIS, COREY WILLIAMS and JOHN HANNA
ST. LOUIS (AP) — At least seven people died and authorities were
searching from building to building for people who were trapped or hurt
after severe storms including at least one possible tornado swept
through Missouri.
The storms were part of a severe weather system Friday that caused
severe damage in Missouri, spawned tornadoes in Wisconsin, left hundreds
of thousands without power in the Great Lakes region and brought a
punishing heat wave to Texas.
The storms Friday afternoon tore roofs off buildings, blew out windows,
ripped bricks off siding and yanked up trees and power lines. St. Louis
Mayor Cara Spencer confirmed five deaths in her city and said more than
5,000 homes were affected and about 100,000 customers remained without
electricity on Friday night.
“This is truly, truly devastating,” Spencer said, adding that the city
was in the process of declaring an emergency and an overnight curfew
Friday had been put into place in the neighborhoods with the most
damage.
The number of people injured was not immediately known. Barnes-Jewish
Hospital received 20 to 30 patients from the storm with some in serious
condition and most expected to be discharged by Friday night, according
to hospital spokesperson Laura High.
St. Louis Children's Hospital received 15 patients with two of them
expected to remain in the hospital into the weekend, she said.
National Weather Service radar indicated a tornado touched down between
2:30 p.m. and 2:50 p.m. in Clayton, Missouri, in the St. Louis area. The
apparent tornado touched down in the area of Forest Park, home to the
St. Louis Zoo and the site of the 1904 World’s Fair and Olympic Games
the same year.
At Centennial Christian Church, City of St. Louis Fire Department
Battalion Chief William Pollihan told The Associated Press that three
people had to be rescued after part of the church crumbled. One of those
people died.
Stacy Clark said his mother-in-law Patricia Penelton died in the church.
He described her as a very active church volunteer who had many roles,
including being part of the choir.
Jeffrey Simmons Sr., who lives across from the church, heard an alert on
his phone and then the lights went out.
“And next thing you know, a lot of noise, heavy wind,” he said. He and
his brother went into the basement. Later, he realized it was worse than
he thought. “Everything was tore up.”
Downed trees and stop lights also caused traffic gridlock during the
Friday afternoon commute and officials urged people to stay home.
The upper stories of the Harlem Taproom's brick building were demolished
when the storm came through, leaving piles of bricks around the outside.
About 20 people were inside, but they huddled in the back of the
building and none were hurt, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
John Randle, a 19-year-old University of Missouri-St. Louis student,
said he and his girlfriend were at the St. Louis Art Museum during the
storm and were hustled into the basement with about 150 other people.
They could hear tree branches and hail hitting the building’s windows
and Randle went up a flight of stairs to the main entrance for about 10
seconds, he said.
"You could see the doors flying open, tree branches flying by and people
running,” he said. “A lot of people were caught outside.”
Christy Childs, a Saint Louis Zoo spokesperson, said in a text that the
zoo would remain closed Saturday because of downed trees and other
damage. Childs said all animals were safe and that there were no reports
of significant injuries to staff, guests or animals.
“We can’t definitively say whether or not it was a tornado — it likely
was,” National Weather Service meteorologist Marshall Pfahler said.
A tornado struck in Scott County, about 130 miles (209 kilometers) south
of St. Louis, killing two people, injuring several others and destroying
multiple homes, Sheriff Derick Wheetley wrote on social media.
“Our first responders acted swiftly, even while the tornado was still
active, putting themselves in harm’s way to provide immediate assistance
and care to those injured,” he said.
Appalachia and Midwest face danger
Weather forecasters warned severe storms with possible tornadoes, hail
and even hurricane-force winds could hobble parts of Appalachia and the
Midwest on Friday.
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Part of Centennial Christian Church in St. Louis, Missouri,
collapsed on Friday, May 16, 2025 when severe storms, including a
possible tornado, swept through the city. (AP Photo/Michael Phillis)
The weather service warned of a rare tornado emergency around
Marion, Illinois, on Friday evening, saying a tornado had been
confirmed and was life-threatening. Reports of damage and injuries
were not immediately available.
A dust storm warning was issued around the Chicago area Friday
night. The weather service said a wall of dust extended along a
100-mile (161-kilometer) line from southwest of Chicago to northern
Indiana that severely reduced visibility.
The National Weather Service said residents in Kentucky, southern
Indiana, southern Illinois, parts of Tennessee, Missouri, Arkansas
and Ohio should brace for intense storms that could include
baseball-sized hail.
The weather service's Storm Prediction Center said “strong,
potentially long-track tornadoes and very large hail” could be
expected. and the threat for damaging winds in excess of 75 mph (120
kph) would increase into Friday evening as storms grew into larger
clusters.
Ahead of Friday night’s anticipated storm, Appalachian Power, which
serves 1 million customers in West Virginia, Virginia and Tennessee,
said it requested 1,700 additional workers from neighboring
utilities along with sending its own crews from unaffected areas to
assist with service restoration.
Faith Borden, a meteorologist in the National Weather Service
Nashville office, said Friday that middle Tennessee could expect
"all types of severe weather. Winds up to 70 mph. We’re talking
seriously large hail up to 3 inches, which for us is big hail.”
Texas hit by heat wave
Texas faced searing heat. A heat advisory was issued for San Antonio
and Austin, with temperatures at a blistering 95 F (35 C) to 105
(40.5 C). Parts of the southern East Coast, from Virginia to
Florida, battled with heat in the 90s (32-37 C).
The National Weather Service Office for Austin/San Antonio said
Friday the humidity coming in over the weekend was expected to make
temperatures feel hotter.
“There are concerns of heat exhaustion for people that aren’t taking
proper precautions when they’re outdoors,” meteorologist Jason
Runyen said, advising those affected to take breaks and stay
hydrated.
Overnight Thursday, storms accompanied by booming thunder, lightning
displays and powerful winds swept through parts of Wisconsin,
Illinois, northern Indiana and Michigan, leaving scores of trees
down and thousands of homes without power.
Several tornadoes touched down Thursday in central Wisconsin. None
of the twisters had received ratings Thursday, said Timm Uhlmann, a
National Weather Service meteorologist in Green Bay.
“We’re still gathering reports,” Uhlmann said. “We’re assessing some
of the damage and still getting video and pictures. The damage that
we have is fairly widespread. There was a lot of large hail. In Eau
Claire was one report of softball-sized hail.”
No injuries were immediately reported.
Surveys also were underway Friday of damage in Michigan to determine
if any tornadoes touched down, said Steven Freitag, a meteorologist
with the National Weather Service in White Lake Township, northwest
of Detroit.
The storms were fueled by temperatures in the lower 80s Farenheit
(26-29 C) stretching from Illinois into Michigan and activated by a
cold front that pushed through, Freitag said.
By Friday night, customers in Michigan were seeing power return but
nearly 190,000 remained without electricity. Power outages also were
recorded into Friday night in more than a half-dozen other states
including Missouri and Indiana.
The threat of severe weather in Chicago delayed a Beyoncé concert by
about two hours Thursday at Soldier Field.
___
Associated Press writers Haya Panjwani in Washington, D.C., Heather
Hollingsworth in Kansas City, Missouri, and Lisa Baumann in
Bellingham, Washington, contributed to this story.
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