Departures resume at St. Louis airport hit by tornado

April 24, 2011 at 9:30 a.m. | Updated April 24, 2011 at 9:30 a.m.

In this aerial photo, a large hole is seen in the roof of Concourse C at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport Saturday, April 23, 2011, in St. Louis. The National Weather Service confirms that it was a tornado that struck the airport causing several injuries and sending people scurrying for shelter as plated glass shattered around them and also caused damage in several St. Louis County communities.
In this aerial photo, a large hole is seen in the roof of Concourse C at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport Saturday, April 23, 2011, in St. Louis. The National Weather Service confirms that it was a tornado that struck the airport causing several injuries and sending people scurrying for shelter as plated glass shattered around them and also caused damage in several St. Louis County communities.

ST. LOUIS (AP) - Flights are departing the St. Louis airport for the first time since a tornado struck two days ago.

Departures began Sunday morning at Lambert Airport, even as cleanup continued. The C concourse remains closed, but airport and city officials hope to have the airport operating at about 70 percent capacity. However, dozens of departing flights remain canceled.

Complete repairs could take two months.

The tornado that struck the airport Friday night broke panes of glass, tossed a shuttle bus onto a roof and damaged a few planes. Nine St. Louis County communities were also hit. Gov. Jay Nixon says 750 homes in the St. Louis area are damaged.

Five people were injured at Lambert, but none seriously. There were no serious injuries or deaths from the tornado.

Online:

www.lambert-stlouis.com

Earlier coverage:

Airport resuming operations slowly after EF3 twister that hit several nearby suburbs

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