Four St. Louisans are in Washington this week to meet with Missouri congressional representatives and push for a stronger Federal Emergency Management Agency. Some will tell their stories of being directly impacted by the May 16 tornado, while others will share what they saw coordinating local response efforts.
The quartet was organized by Action St. Louis, which set up a centralized relief hub within 48 hours of the tornado and kept it going, along with 10,000 volunteers, for six weeks. They’re joining a group of around 80 people impacted by natural disasters across the country convening in the nation’s capitol to push for stronger federal disaster response efforts.
Action St. Louis members will meet with U.S. Congressman Sam Graves, a northern Missouri Republican who introduced a bill to “dramatically reform” the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) this past spring. They will also meet with staffers for U.S. Rep. Emmanuel Cleaver (D-Kansas City), they say…