Five people died in St. Louis, while two others died in Scott County, southeastern Missouri, officials said.
At an evening press conference, St. Louis officials said they may have been affected by the severe afternoon weather outbreak.
Spokesmen for both St. Louis Children’s Hospital and Burns Jewish Hospital said the facility had at least 35 patients, with 15 children’s facilities and at least 20 Burns Jews, and possibly 30 injured as a result of severe weather.
The spokesman said all but two patients at the children’s facility are expected to be released Friday night. One had previously been reported to be in a dangerous condition. Some of the Burns Jews were to be released, while others are said to be in serious condition, the spokesman said.
At a later press conference, Mayor Kara Spencer announced that the death toll has increased from four to five. She previously said two of the dead were killed in North City, where the vortex was reported.
The northern part of the city from the forest park to the north boundary was subject to a curfew until 6am, the mayor said.
Fire Chief Dennis Jenkerson said harsh weather hit the city’s approximately 20 square blocks.
St. Louis Police Department spokesman Mitch McCoy said search and rescue operations are still ongoing, with the help of Missouri State Highway patrols and first responders from surrounding counties.
“It’s all about the deck that rescues as many people as possible and saves lives,” he told NBC affiliate KSDK in St. Louis.
According to the utility tracker Poweroutage.us, search crews can find a lot of darkness in the city. Missouri has over 97,000 customers in the dark, according to the site.
The tornado was reported in the city near Forest Park at 2:30pm and moved east towards Granite City, Illinois, National Weather Service meteorologist Marshall Pfarrer said.
That force level will rarely be known until Saturday when weather service spotters can reach the scene and measure vortex damage, tracks and other factors.
The weather services office covering St. Louis later said in X, “Damage reports and radar images suggest that a tornado likely occurred in parts of St. Louis this afternoon. There will be a survey team on the ground to check and assign ratings tomorrow.”
KSDK reported that two tornadoes may have landed in the area on Friday. The National Weather Service said it is working to check the second twister.
MNA/