This is an article written by one of our students, Evelynn P. The opinions expressed herein do not reflect those of Civitas other than respect for the value of open dialogue. To read more Civitas Examiner stories or to submit your own, click here.
There have been many effects of the EF4 tornado that passed through from Clayton, MO to Edwardsville, IL on May 16. While most families south of Saint Louis were able to quickly recover from the damage, lower income families in the north of Saint Louis (The Ville neighborhood specifically) are still struggling. These struggles are due to lack of insurance, expensive damages, or homes being deemed unlivable.
According to InsuranceNewsNet, “Around 28% of the 8,000 tornado-impacted homeowners north of Delmar Boulevard are likely uninsured.” Because of this, some people who cannot afford to move or repair their house have been forced to sleep in their cars outside their home, or live in motels for months at a time. Meanwhile, higher income families quickly repair their damages and continue life as normal.
The impacts however are not limited to just homes, but businesses and schools as well. STLPR informs North Saint Louis city students and parents that Sumner High School will be closing for the upcoming school year due to the damage caused by the tornado, and might close permanently. This would force the students into Stevens Middle School, changing the student-teacher ratio from 9:1 to about 21:1. Some worry that separating the students from their own environment might affect the North City community.
Maps from both The Nation and Brad Panovich show that most of the damage caused by the tornado took place north of Delmar.
