There is so much to learn about staying safe from some of the area's biggest storms.
On Dec. 31, 2010 a tornado struck Sunset Hills on an unusually warm day. That weather helped create a rash of tornadoes, taking five lives in Missouri and leaving behind millions of dollars in damage.
Many more big storms hit in 2011. April was besieged by tornadoes. Girard and Honey Bend saw major destruction.
Then, the so-called "Good Friday" tornadoes arrived April 22, 2011. Those who lived through them will never forget that night. At one point, winds were estimated at more than 165 mph, from an EF-4 tornado.
Touching down in western St. Louis County, it tore through Bridgeton, Hazelwood, and parts of Madison County, Illinois. Lambert-St. Louis International Airport was hit hard.
Pontoon Beach and Granite City, both in Illinois, were also major targets. Authorities say 2,700 buildings were damaged or destroyed, including 251 homes. At the airport alone the damage totaled more than $20 million.
Many say it was a miracle no one was killed on that Good Friday.
The National Weather Service says it's possible that Providence played a part, but also many other factors were in play. There was 34 minutes in lead time and wall-to-wall news coverage. Many people took control of their own safety.
The year of the drought was 2012. But it brought the second-most expensive hailstorm in St. Louis history at the end of April.
In 2013, Hazelwood and Bridgeton were hit with tornadoes again. One left its mark on the famous Hill neighborhood in St. Louis.
PHOTOS:Tornado damage in The Hill
PHOTOS:Hazelwood tornado damage
In November 2013, a line of storms went through Missouri. By the time they got to Illinois they were tornadoes. Two people died and several towns were in shambles.
Fast forward to 2014 when a twister hit in an area where a storm had made its mark just a year earlier in St. Peters. Ron Roak lives blocks away from a gym that was a target. He says this damage is becoming all too common.
"We got a lot of wind," Roak said. "This is pretty much is becoming tornado alley. We are getting a lot of tornadoes here in St. Louis County."
No one was hurt at the Club Fitness off North St. Peters Parkway. Christopher Estes watched the storm roll in.
"I remember I turned to my wife and was like, 'This could drop any second here and become a tornado," said Estes.
In September that year another tornado hit St. Peters. Trees were uprooted, sheds were taken out and some fences were destroyed. Winds were estimated at about 75 miles per hour, travelling two miles on the ground.
One woman said it was strong enough to snap the top of her tree down toward her lawn.
"I was in bed and then, around 9-ish, I heard the wind going and so I got up to check on my patio furniture and I saw my umbrella flying and my table lifting up. So, of course, I go out there and try to close my umbrella. And then after that, I came to the front to see if my car was damaged and I saw our tree on the middle of the street," she said.
