FEMA completes initial damage assessments in St. Louis. What’s next?

ST. LOUIS – FEMA has completed its preliminary damage assessments in St. Louis as of Friday, just one week after a devastating EF-3 tornado struck the city and only two days after crews began on-the-ground evaluations.

The FEMA assessments are a critical step toward a federal major disaster declaration, which would unlock long-term federal aid, including individual financial assistance.

FEMA crews are expected to return to St. Louis next week for further logistical work, according to St. Louis Mayor Cara Spencer. That said, the path to unlocking federal aid is a multi-step process that may take some time to complete.

Where Things Stand Now

Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe has already submitted a request for an emergency declaration. If approved, that would allow for up to $5 million in immediate funding for debris removal and other emergency protective measures. That still awaits approval from U.S. President Donald Trump.

An emergency declaration also opens the door for a federal major disaster declaration, which would offer far more expansive assistance, including housing aid, public infrastructure repair and grants for displaced residents and businesses.

The FEMA assessments from Wednesday to Friday were essential in documenting the extent of tornado damage and determining whether the state meets qualifications for a broader disaster declaration.

Missouri U.S. Sen. Eric Schmitt, who has been in contact with both FEMA and President Trump, noted during a Friday press conference that FEMA has moved “incredibly quickly” to complete its initial assessments. He suggested that if all procedural requirements are met, the major disaster declaration could be absorbed into the request for a major disaster declaration.

For now, an emergency declaration has been sent and a request for a major disaster declaration is likely soon to follow. Only the president can issue an emergency or major disaster declaration.

The Next Steps

With FEMA’s preliminary assessments now complete, officials are working to compile damage data and deliver it promptly to Gov. Kehoe. Schmitt anticipates that FEMA’s findings could be finalized and sent to the governor within the next 1-2 days.

Once Kehoe receives the full report, he can formally request a major disaster declaration for more extensive federal aid.

To qualify for a major disaster declaration, a state must meet a minimum damage threshold. Schmitt estimates that to be roughly $11 million and believes that threshold has been met in aftermath of last week’s tornadoes.

Once that happens, Schmitt intends to send a letter to President Trump within 24 hours in support of the requested major disaster declaration. After that, the president’s signature is the last essential step in unlocking federal relief.

“We’re going to continue to work as quickly as we can to get the declaration and the disaster declaration granted by the president for this storm that happened last Friday a week ago,” said Schmitt.

How Long Could It Take?

As St. Louis continues to recover from Friday’s tornado, President Trump approved a separate major disaster declaration that allows for individual assistance from March 14-15 tornadoes in Missouri, including some which struck in nearby St. Louis County.

Earlier this week, FOX 2 analyzed data and found that it typically takes a little over two months – or 67 days on average – for major disaster declarations to be approved following severe weather events. Friday’s approved declaration for the March storms was right around that timeline.

If that pattern holds, it’s possible that a major disaster declaration for the St. Louis tornado may not be approved until late-July.

With this in mind, Schmitt acknowledged the urgency while emphasizing the need to follow the federal process.

“I agree we want to do this as quickly as possible, and that’s our goal,” said Schmitt. There is a process in place to get that approved. As soon as we get that [major disaster declaration] request from the governor, I imagine a letter would go out within 24 hours to the president, and we’ll keep in touch with everybody who are the decision makers on this to move that decision making process along as fast as possible. We want to make sure St. Louis gets the help that it needs.”

Missouri U.S. Rep. Wesley Bell echoed that urgency and said local leaders are doing everything they can to accelerate the timeline for help.

“Our office looked into the average times of FEMA hitting the ground and declarations. We’re well within that average,” said Bell. “That said, we’re not going to sit and rest either. We’re going to keep pushing. We don’t have time to waste. We want to make sure we get every resource and bring every resource that we can to bear as quickly as we possibly can.”

Are Leaders Confident?

While concerns remain over whether FEMA funding will come through, especially as President Trump has proposed scaling back the agency, Mayor Spencer expressed confidence in the city’s response and support from Missouri leaders, especially Gov. Kehoe.

“I have full confidence our governor is doing what he can to get us [a declaration],” said Spencer. “I know it feels like a long time. We are working our tails off to get that evaluation done, we are firming it up and we are truly moving as fast as we possibly can to get that done.”

Schmitt, who has had various discussion with Trump and White House staff in recent days, said he is confident FEMA funding will eventually be secured for the state.

“I don’t have any concerns about that,” said Schmitt. “We organized a call with FEMA earlier this week. Congressman Bell was on that call to make sure they understood what a priority it was for us to do these damage assessments as quickly as possible.”

“My anticipation is the governor is doing a great job, in the next day or too, when he has all that information from what FEMA did on the ground, we’ll make another request for the major disaster declaration.”

Bell added on the situation, “There’s always going to be concern because this is our community. These are our neighbors. So until those resources are delivered, until that check is cashed, yes there are going to be resources, but that’s why we are all working together. Everyone is doing everything they can to make certain that this happens.”

St. Louis officials have previously estimated the tornado caused around $1 billion in damage to around 5,000 homes and businesses across several westside and northside neighborhoods.