A household tornado plan for St. Louis

Last updated: October 10, 2026

Every St. Louis household's tornado plan needs four things: more than one way to hear a warning, a place everyone can reach in under a minute, a drill you've practiced at night, and a kit waiting where you'll shelter. Don't rely on outdoor sirens — the City of St. Louis describes its sirens as an outdoor system meant to send people indoors, and on May 16, 2025 they did not sound before the tornado. Sign up for your local alert system, keep a NOAA Weather Radio, and turn on emergency alerts on your phone.

Step 1: Get warnings more than one way

Outdoor sirens. The City of St. Louis operates 60 sirens; St. Louis County tests 204. Both test on the first Monday of each month at 11 a.m. The County sounds its sirens for National Weather Service tornado warnings and for severe thunderstorm warnings with winds of 80 mph or more. The City says its sirens are "meant to direct residents and visitors to go indoors".

After the sirens did not sound before the 2025 tornado — the 2025 tornado guide has the review's findings — the City put the Fire Department in charge of activation (Executive Order 83) and, as of April 2026, automated the sirens to trigger whenever a tornado warning is issued for St. Louis.

Local alert systems. Sign up for the one where you live:

NOAA Weather Radio. The St. Louis-area transmitter is listed as KDO89 on 162.550 MHz, from Shrewsbury, programmed by the NWS St. Louis office — confirm your county's frequency when you set up a radio. A radio with a battery backup and alert tone wakes you at 3 a.m. when your phone might not.

Phone alerts. Make sure Wireless Emergency Alerts are turned on in your phone's settings.

Step 2: Decide where you'll go

• Best: a safe room built to FEMA P-361 / ICC 500 criteria (what those mean).
• Without a safe room: the National Weather Service's advice is the lowest floor, in an interior room away from windows — a basement if you have one.
• Not in a mobile home or vehicle. The NWS says mobile homes aren't safe in a tornado. Plan a sturdy building you can reach. See mobile home tornado safety.
• Not under a highway overpass. The NWS says overpasses are not acceptable shelter.

Step 3: Drill it at night

Many of the region's damaging tornadoes have come in the evening or after dark: January 1967 at 6:55 p.m., April 2011 at 7:55 p.m., May 2013 at 7:50 p.m., two in December 2021 after 7:30 p.m. Run your drill after dark:

1. Trigger it with the weather radio's test button or a phone alarm.
2. Everyone goes to the shelter spot — shoes on, with the go-bag.
3. Time it. Our rule of thumb: under a minute.
4. Fix whatever slowed you down.

Do it twice a year, including once in winter.

Step 4: Keep a kit where you'll shelter

• Sturdy shoes for everyone (debris and glass).
• Helmets — bike helmets work — especially for children.
• Flashlight and spare batteries; weather radio.
• Phone charger or battery pack.
• Whistle, to signal if you're trapped.
• Water and any critical medications.
• Copies of IDs and insurance information.
• Pet carriers and leashes.

Step 5: Know what to do after

• Stay put until the warning expires or the storm has clearly passed.
• Watch for downed power lines, gas leaks and broken glass.
• Text rather than call, to keep lines open.
• Photograph damage for insurance.
• Watch for contractor fraud. After the 2025 tornado, the City set up a Contractor Fraud Legal Task Force.

Special cases

• Apartments and condos: ask your building where its refuge area is. Interior hallways on the lowest floor are typical.
• Schools, churches, workplaces: know their plan.
• People with mobility needs: plan who helps whom, and consider an above-ground safe room. See capacity and access.

Related guides

• The May 16, 2025 St. Louis tornado
• St. Louis tornado history and risk
• Do you need a shelter if you have a basement?

Frequently asked questions

Are St. Louis sirens reliable now? The City says they're now automated to sound on a tornado warning and that the Fire Department is responsible for activation. Still, sirens are an outdoor system. Use a radio and phone alerts indoors.

When are sirens tested? The first Monday of each month at 11 a.m., in both the City and St. Louis County.

What's the safest place without a shelter? The lowest floor, in an interior room away from windows, under something sturdy, with your head covered.

Should I open windows to equalize pressure? No. Get to shelter.

Get a quote

A plan works better with a tested room at the end of it. See basement safe rooms, or get a quote.