Overview

• An EF3 tornado struck St. Louis on May 16, killing five people and causing extensive property damage without any warning sirens activated.
• The City Emergency Management Agency (CEMA) failed to activate the sirens as Commissioner Sarah Russell and her staff were offsite at a workshop during the storm.
• Mayor Cara Spencer placed Russell on paid administrative leave and appointed Fire Captain John Walk as interim CEMA commissioner.
• New protocols now assign responsibility for activating tornado sirens to the fire department to ensure immediate action in future emergencies.
• An internal investigation into CEMA's actions during the tornado is ongoing, while the mayor has criticized the federal response for being too slow.