Facing dangerously cold temperatures, some north city residents in damaged properties are choosing to stay put, fearing their remaining possessions will be stolen.<\/p>\n
ST. LOUIS \u2014 With temperatures plunging this weekend, conditions are becoming increasingly dangerous for many people in north St. Louis who suffered damage from the May tornado. 5 On Your Side has learned some are choosing to stay in potentially unsafe properties \u2014 just to keep thieves away.<\/p>\n
So many homes in north city are still boarded up and do not have electricity or gas following the storm. Tornado survivors who may have the option to go somewhere else are choosing not to \u2014 due to the threat of their life-long possessions being taken in an instant.<\/p>\n
Marine Corp veteran Larry Powell\u2019s North City home, which is boarded up with missing walls following the May 16 tornado, has already been targeted.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnfortunately someone has broken into his home so his basement door needed to be re-attached,\u201d said Carroll Lehnhoff-Bell, a north city resident.<\/p>\n
Neighbors say this has become a widespread concern across the community, where thieves are looking to make a quick grab.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust this week, we caught one person, a person whose home was being looted,\u201d Lehnhoff-Bell said. \u201cIn weeks prior to that, people are breaking into homes and taking what’s there.\u201d<\/p>\n
Powell echoed the desperate situation many are facing. \u201cSome are attempting to stay in their homes simply because if they leave, all of their possessions might walk out behind them.\u201d<\/p>\n
That is exactly what Steven Simmons told 5 On Your Side he is doing.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s just me trying to protect my home,\u201d Simmons said in in interview last month, after thieves struck his tornado-damaged residence at least four times since May.<\/p>\n
Simmons described the repeated break-ins. \u201cWhen we pulled up this morning, we noticed the meter box hanging off… Our contractors’ equipment was stolen. Our brand new AC units were stolen. They actually did break off the door knob and try to go inside of the home.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe’re going to continue to monitor it,\u201d said Mitch McCoy of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. \u201cSince May 13, this police department, the men and women of this department have been watching and closely monitoring for any kind of potential trend related to thefts….There’s nothing to suggest that we’re seeing an uptick.\u201d<\/p>\n
With temperatures getting dangerously cold, neighbors say something has to change.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople are feeling the need to stay close to their home or stay in their home even if the conditions are not desirable,\u201d Lehnhoff-Bell said.<\/p>\n
Lehnhoff-Bell is part of a community effort<\/a> of volunteers who have been chipping in to do repair work at tornado-damaged homes. Their work will pause this weekend due to the cold but will resume next Friday and Sunday. \u00a0For more information on volunteering, check out the Instagram accounts for @alirand<\/a> and @carroll_lb<\/a>. \u00a0To donate to the effort, click here<\/a> and select “Rebuild Academy.”<\/p>\n