Leaders from across St. Louis came to Maryland Heights Friday afternoon to testify before the Missouri House of Representative’s Interim Committee on Disaster Recovery. Mayors, county officials and state senators were just a handful among those who shared their experiences with the Good Friday storms and other disasters. This was the fourth hearing the committee held since June 22. The committee held other hearings in Sedalia, Joplin and Sikeston. Maryland Heights Mayor Mike Moeller told the committee that city building and code enforcement officials tagged 800 homes affected by the storm. …

Even as more tornados devistate other parts of Missouri, Maryland Heights continues to clean its own tornado damage and help residents return their lives to normal. Residents have another month to bring storm debris to the curb. Maryland Heights Patch re-visited parts of the city hit hardest by the Good Friday storms. Check out this photo gallery of how those areas look now.

About one month after severe weather struck Maryland Heights and other St. Louis County communities, tornados struck Joplin. USA Today reported at least 89 people were killed in the May 22 storms. As crews and officials in Joplin continue to search for survivors and restore services, Maryland Heights is still recovering from its own severe weather strike. About 800 homes were damaged in the Good Friday storms, with between 200 and 250 homes seriously damaged. City Administrator Mark Levin addressed the continuing tornado clean up in Maryland Heights at the May 19 City Council meeting. He told…

Nine volunteers from Verizon Wireless teamed with Service International on May 6 to clear debris after the Good Friday storms, according to Verizon spokesperson Gabby Bladdick. "Verizon noted how important it was to get the community up and running again," Bladdick said in an email. Check out these photos of the volunteers in action, courtesy of Verizon Wireless.

When firefighters arrived at Wagner Portrait Group studios after the Good Friday tornado hit Maryland Heights, they found a large number of windows blown in and interior damage to computers and office equipment. They also found Natasha, a Siberian husky, the office dog. “She was just sitting there by the door, waiting for someone to come get her,” said Penny Wagner, of Wagner Portrait Group. Natasha is popular with Wagner Portrait clients. “All our customers see her when they come in,” Wagner said. “They see me and call out their windows, ‘We’re so happy Natasha was OK. We’re so proud of her…

The City of Maryland Heights' Planning Commission will hold a public hearing May 24 on a proposed zoning code amendment that would allow structures damaged in the Good Friday storm that did not meet zoning code requirements be rebuilt as they were before the storm hit. The proposed zoning code amendment would "allow nonconforming homes severely damaged by this storm to be built back to the same size and location they were before the storm without a variance," according to a flyer from the city. The amendments would affect Maryland Heights residents whose homes are damaged more than 60 percent…

While the Good Friday storms hit Maryland Heights, the St. Louis area chapter of the Red Cross was in the suburb offering help. Katie Nagus, communications coordinator for the St. Louis area chapter, said the shelter in the Maryland Heights Centre helped between 30 and 40 people. The Red Cross offered those who needed help a place to stay, food and comfort kits. The comfort kits included toiletries such as washcloths and toothbrushes. Nagus said the shelter closed on Friday based on diminishing needs. Shelter workers saw the number of people using the shelter was shrinking, she said. But the …

NEW YORK, N.Y. – Jesse Farmer was in the backyard cleaning up pieces of his home that was crushed during the horrid tornado that hit Bridgeton, Missouri on April 22 when two representatives from the St. Louis Rams walked up. A week later Farmer and his family went from the depths of a terrible nightmare turned reality to New York City where Jesse helped the organization call their fourth pick in this year’s NFL draft at Radio City Music Hall. “It’s an unbelievable feeling,” said Farmer, who played football at Pattonville High School. “I’ve watched the draft for the past six years and never …

Maryland Heights residents can turn on the lights—AmerenUE's Outage Map Plus reported that customers in zip code 63043 have no power outages as of 11:20 a.m. Friday. But not everyone in St. Louis County has seen power return. Ameren's website said 22 customers in the county as of 11:20 a.m. Friday. Only one customer in St. Louis City was without power Friday, the website said.

A group of about 10 people with ties to Fontbonne University in Clayton will provide help later this week to Maryland Heights residents affected by Friday's tornado.The participants, including faculty and staff, will provide assistance in cooperation with Fontbonne Day. Numerous faculty, staff and students take the day to volunteer in places throughout the St. Louis area as part of the school's mission, which includes serving a world in need, said Mary Abkemeier, a professor of mathematics and computer science at the university. The event first happened in 2008.Abkemeier said she began making…

Five groups of assessors from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) started assessing homes damaged by the Good Friday storms on Wednesday. The teams are surveying Maryland Heights, Ferguson and other areas hit by the storm. The FEMA officials are part of a Joint Preliminary Assessment Team, which consists of local officials, state authorities from the Missouri Emergency Management Agency, and an official from the Small Business Administration. Officials will assess home damage and will give the information to the state. FEMA spokesperson Josh deBerge told Maryland Heights Patch that…

Residents of greater St. Louis will not soon forget Good Friday 2011 and Easter weekend. A tornado that ranged from EF1 to EF4 on the Fujita scale (with EF5 being the worst) traveled 22 miles west to east across the St. Louis metro area on Friday, striking Lambert-St. Louis International Airport, as well as nearby communities. An estimated 750 homes were damaged in this latest tornado, Gov. Jay Nixon said at a press conference Saturday from the airport. Power was out to some 47,000 customers at the height of the storm. Here is a roundup of coverage from Patch around the region: The Good …

Most of those who lost power in St. Louis County can turn back on the lights. Only 1,015 Ameren customers did not have power as of 9 a.m. Tuesday, according to AmerenUE's Outage Map Plus website. Only one customer did not have have power in St. Louis City at the same time, Ameren's website said. Ameren hasn't restored power completely to Maryland Heights yet. As of 9:10 a.m, 90 customers with the zip code 63043 still had no power. Ameren serves 1,1670 with that zip code.

The Pattonville School District will resume classes Tuesday, April 26. A district spokesperson said via email that district areas with limited road access will have alternative bus routes. You can see the modified bus routes here.

Thousands of St. Louis County residents are still without power after the storms April 22. According to Ameren's Outage Map Plus, 8,454 customers were still without power in the county as of 11:50 a.m. Only 478 were still without power in St. Louis city, at the same time. Ameren reports no outages in St. Charles County. Maryland Heights still has more than 2,000 customers without power. Customers with the zip code 63043 has 2,178 customers without power.

Pattonville School District has declared Monday an emergency day, according to district superintendent Dr. Mike Fulton. Schools are closed for students, Fulton said, but staff members will still report to work. Bus drivers, however, will not be required to come in, Fulton said. Only one school in Pattonville School District sustained damage from Friday's storm. Bridgeway Elementary School in Bridgeton sustained slight damage, Fulton said. Bridgeway Elementary and Rose Acres Elementary in Maryland Heights are the only Pattonville schools that do not have power. Fulton said a number of …

Roads are still closed in Maryland Heights after the Good Friday storm. A phone call to the Maryland Heights Police Department revealed McKelvey Road and Kentwood Drive were still closed as of 10:11 a.m. on April 24.  The police are waiting for Ameren to give the OK, according to the police department, as Ameren workers clear power lines.  Previously, An Ameren spokesperson said 1,000 workers were trying to restore power across the St. Louis area.

As Maryland Heights residents worked to come to terms with damage to their homes and neighborhood, comes the conclusion that the tornado that ripped through St. Louis County on Good Friday was the most powerful since 1967.  St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay said as much at a Saturday afternoon press conference. Slay was joined by Missouri Governor Jay Nixon and St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley, and the trio discussed the tornado's destruction at a Lambert St. Louis International Airport press conference. The airport will be open for arrivals as early as Saturday night, according to …

A storm destroyed homes and brought down power lines in Maryland Heights April 22. Maryland Heights Patch brings you more photos of the area around Rose Acres Lane, where the storm was especially brutal.

St. Louis travelers have a bit of good news in light of Friday storms: Lambert Airport should operate at 70 percent capacity by Sunday. Officials said in a news conference Saturday morning that Terminal One sustained the most damage, while Terminal Two had limited damage. St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay said that he was stunned by the condition the airport was in last night but that airport employees have worked around the clock to get the airport running again. Slay said the airport should go to 100 percent capacity by the middle of the week. St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley said no St…