Jan 24, 1967 - St Louis County Tornado

One of the worst tornadoes in St. Louis area history hit on January 24, 1967. It was an F4 with winds of more than 200mph and touched down first in Chesterfield.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• myfoxstl
• tornado
• chesterfield
• fox2
• january
• 1967
• spanish
• lake

[gregrxstl]

I was in 5th grade. We lived on Traverse Lane in Edmundson. We huddled in the hallway---no basements in those houses. Ours was the only house on our street without broken windows, because my dad left the back door open. Afterward, he walked around to have a look, and when he got back he said the houses on St. Girard and St. Jerome were leveled. I remember it got real cold after the storm, and I was reading "Robin Hood" by candlelight because we had no power. That night is seared into my memory

[the1stFamilyman]

I'm assuming this same tornado took out Spartan Dept store (now Brekenridge Hills shopping center) barely missing us, we lived on Edmund Dr. at the time, and we weren't in the basement either.

[billbertking]

lol! happend they day my dad waz born!

[cameronrr1]

yes all correct. tracked very similar to the good friday tornadoes. i remember thinking something was up when it was so warm at recess. we lived at bottom of bristolhall in westhaven. galaxy court was totally leveled. came across dorset & fee fee then crossed lindburgh. you could see the paths of bent trees in the woods. there were 2 of them....

[surfnname]

I lived on the corner of Dawn Hill Dr and Glenmeade when this hit. I was 13 years old and home alone with my little brother. I vividly remember heading to the basement when debris started pounding the house. We were 3 steps from the basement floor when the power went out, the clocks stopped at 7:03pm. Our house sustained minimum damage but everything to the north was shredded, including our curbside shrubbery and mailbox. (see the pic at 0:46) It was that close

[billysings]

The teachers did not resist the unusually warm weather or the cajoling of the older students as they allowed for the rare January football game at Weber Elementary School in Creve Coeur (now the Creve Coeur Government Center). At 4:00pm the wind was blowing, terrifically, but remained quite warm under a very blue sky as the sun began to set.

For 2 or 3 days, police directed thousands of awe-struck sight-seers driving slowly past the incredible damage in Riverbend and Old Farm Estates.

[KLM817]

Does anyone know where the tornado hit in St. Ann? Like what intersection or area??

[stlchevy95]

Dayum that might have hit where the creve couer ice rink is. I'm practicing on where an f4 tornado once stood.

[915mcm]

I was 7 then and I still remember how warm it had been than day (70 degrees)and that night hearing the roar as it hit us in Spanish Lake. We were relatively unscathed. Found this today after talking with someone who had lived near Maryland Heights then. She remembers the homes that were leveled and the National Guard coming in. Her home was livable again after 5 weeks. I wasn't aware, until today, of the extent of this tornado outbreak.

[bgoldrock]

Wow, a tornado in January? That is bizarre! I never heard about this.