CLAYTON, MO (KTVI - FOX2now.com)—
The big storm that rolled through the St. Louis area Monday morning is being blamed for an explosion and fire in Clayton, Missouri, that resulted in a power outage to four St. Louis County buildings. A generator at the jail immediately kicked on and kept prisoners secure. The courthouse closed for all business except for emergency court orders. The explosion and fire occurred in the basement of the St. Louis County government building. No one was hurt.However, it forced the evacuation of hundreds of workers and 1,000 county workers were sent home for the day.
People who had business at the government building were turned away or directed to other offices in the county.
According to St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley, a judge and clerk are in place to handle any emergency requests such as protection orders. Bonds will also be handled manually Monday.
The fire forced police to evacuate the 911 call center and moved operators and workers to the Emergency Operation Center in Chesterfield to answer calls and dispatch police from there. A handful of 911 calls were missed for less than an hour. The computer kept a log of those numbers and operators called those numbers back to find out if anyone was in trouble. Police officials report all the missed calls turned out to be non-emergencies.
Trials are canceled for the rest of the week, jurors should not show up. If you have business in the county, call ahead at 314-615-5000 to find out where you should go.
Repair parts are being trucked in from Houston, Texas. Officials hope to have power restored to all the buildings by Thursday.
The storms rolled through around 7:30 a.m. Monday with heavy rain, winds, lightning and hail. Several thousand customers were without power. AmerenUE says crews have been working through the day to restore power.
Forecasters warn that isolated thunderstorms are possible in parts of Missouri through Wednesday, with temperatures remaining unseasonably cool, with highs in the upper 70s and lower 80s.
