Updated May 20, 2025

Forest Park experienced severe damage from the tornadoes that devastated our region on Friday, May 16. The Dennis & Judith Jones Visitor and Education Center remains closed and without power, while many paths and trails have hazards and obstructions from large fallen trees and related damage.

Teams from Forest Park Forever and our partners in the St. Louis City Department of Parks, Recreation, and Forestry continue to work together to assess damage, clear hazards and plan recovery.

City of St. Louis Tornado Recovery & Resources Page

Support Forest Park

Ways You Can Help

We are touched by the many offers to volunteer or otherwise support recovery efforts, which have only underlined how much the Park means to our community.

Repairing and Sustaining the Park: We welcome support for Forest Park’s restoration and repair by becoming a supporting member or making a one-time donation to recovery efforts.
Volunteering: We expect to be able to accept volunteers later this week. However, in these first days immediately following the tornado, we must prioritize assessing damage and removing immediate hazards, which for everyone’s safety is best handled by our specially trained professionals. Check back this week for opportunities to volunteer, and we will also put the call out on social media. You can also subscribe to our e-news to learn about opportunities as well as on-going recovery efforts.

Visiting the Park

While most institutions in the Park have reopened, outside paths continue to have obstructions and hazards throughout. Our recovery teams ask that recreational visitors give us space and consider other outdoors spaces until we are able to work through the massive amount of large, fallen trees and related damage.
Particularly from the west and north ends of the Park all the way to the Anne O’C. Albrecht Nature Playscape, hazards remain. Even if a street or path is clear, there may be “hangers” – large limbs suspended in a tree above – and our team or City Parks crews may be using space for heavy equipment or to stage the large amount of debris from taking apart fallen or damaged trees.
If attending an event or visiting an institution in the Park, please resist the urge to inspect damaged areas until our trained professional teams is able to clear areas safely again.

Thank you for restoring and sustaining Forest Park for our community!