ST. LOUIS 鈥 The city will help residents fix their homes, get their power restored and work to rebuild in areas damaged by the May 16 tornado that toppled structures and trees across north 最新杏吧原创, the mayor said Tuesday.
Licensed contractors, working for the city, will cover damaged roofs with tarps, board up damaged windows and doors, remove fallen trees and push debris to the side of the road for city crews to collect.
The service is free for impacted residents, with priority given to seniors and the uninsured, Mayor Cara Spencer said. Sign up for help is available on the
鈥淭his is an enormous amount of debris, and we want to make sure that we鈥檙e getting it out of the community in the safest way possible,鈥 Spencer said at a press conference Tuesday. 鈥淚f you have a need, please, please, please apply for these.鈥
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鈥淭he house is falling more and more every day,鈥 said Karl Taylor, who feeds his cat Goldie in front of his nephew鈥檚 house, center, where he rents a room on Thursday, June 26, 2025, in the Greater Ville neighborhood of 最新杏吧原创. The May 16 tornado damaged his room and now the roof is slowly collapsing. Taylor has been alternating between living in a tent or in his van, where he keeps items collected from his room and from relief agencies.
Until now, debris cleanup in north 最新杏吧原创 has been slow. Despite the amount of debris collected already 鈥 enough to fill over 9,000 standard garbage trucks 鈥 officials estimate that the area won鈥檛 be clear for another few months.
Spencer said the new program is an effort to fast-track the cleanup process. Private contractors will work alongside city crews, she said.
鈥淲e鈥檙e the glue holding the program together. We鈥檙e administering it,鈥 she said. 鈥淏ut the heavy lifting, the real work, is being done by our community partners.鈥
最新杏吧原创 is using money from the state and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to pay for the work, Spencer said.
John Cousins, 75, a north side resident whose house was hit by the tornado, said he鈥檒l be happy to see more contractors descend on the worst-hit areas. Up until now, he said, it doesn鈥檛 seem like much has been done.
鈥淪ome of these residents are doing a little better than others. But most aren鈥檛,鈥 he said. 鈥淎ny help they can get will be better than nothing.鈥
Volunteer carpenter Sarah Fuller, with Square UP, works to stabilize a tarp on the tornado-damaged roof of a home in the Greater Ville neighborhood on Thursday, June 5, 2025. Weeks after a tornado devastated parts of 最新杏吧原创, some homeowners scrambled to replace tarps that became unattached or ripped.
Cousins used to be a private contractor himself until 鈥渕any years ago.鈥 Since the tornado ripped the roof off his home and destroyed the top floor, he鈥檚 been working to repair it by himself for weeks.
Many of his neighbors, though, lacking the resources or know-how to have their homes repaired, have simply opted to abandon their homes, he said.
鈥淎 full family used to live over there,鈥 Cousins said, gesturing to a destroyed house across the street. He began pointing to more next to it. 鈥淎nd that house had two families. And all four rooms in that one were full, too. Now they鈥檙e just all gone.鈥
Population loss in the ravaged north side has been a concern since the tornado, as more residents lose hope, decide to pack up and move away, city officials said.
鈥淥ur neighbors are in jeopardy,鈥 said Richard Ledbetter, the CEO of Guarantee Electrical Co. His company, among other electrical contractors in the 最新杏吧原创 region, will begin offering free repairs to tornado-affected homes.
鈥淲e鈥檙e going to show out for our neighbors and make sure that they have safe electrical connections,鈥 he said, 鈥渁nd that they can cool down their houses.鈥
They are donating their time and materials, the mayor said.
"It's too heavy, I can't move it," said Sheila Thompson, who watches as a tub catching rain water from her leaking roof overflows in the main bedroom of her house on Friday, June 27, 2025, in the Fountain Park neighborhood. "I don't know what's next," said Thompson, who inherited the family home from her mother. Thompson's home was given a yellow sticker, yet after repeated rainfall the tarp covering her room has started to leak, causing more damage to her home.
North city resident Deandre Blake, 53, said many of the families on his block still don鈥檛 have power. Their homes are too damaged to reconnect.
鈥淎 lot of us are just living in the dark,鈥 he said.
As repairs ramp up across north 最新杏吧原创, though, Spencer said she鈥檚 concerned that scammers posing as contractors may attempt to defraud residents who are hiring their own contractors, by making empty promises of repairs in exchange for money.
To combat potential scams, the city will begin registering trusted contractors , she said. These contractors will carry city-issued placards with a QR code indicating that they鈥檝e been verified.
鈥淩esidents should always ask to see the placard before hiring a contractor, scan the QR code and verify credentials,鈥 the city announced in a press release.
The American Institute of Architects will also begin offering free home repair consultation at 最新杏吧原创 City Hall. Beginning this week, residents can show up Mondays and Wednesdays between noon and 3 p.m. and get advice on how best to rebuild their houses, Spencer said.
鈥淚t is important to us as an organization and profession to positively impact our community in our everyday roles to help rebuild the city we love,鈥 said Melissa Harlan, the executive director of the 最新杏吧原创 chapter of the AIA.
Architect consultation is open to both homeowners and renters, according to the city鈥檚 press release.
Editor's note: This story corrects the day of the mayor's announcement.聽
