Tragedy Strikes: Husband Seeks Justice After Tornado Claims Wife’s Life at Church

An elderly woman’s tragic death under the ruins of a stone church, brought down by a tornado, has sparked a lawsuit from her grieving husband. This heartbreaking incident, which occurred last year, saw 74-year-old Patricia Penelton lose her life when the church’s ancient steeple collapsed onto her.

At the time of the tornado, Patricia was inside the church, assisting with meal services, while her husband, Harry Penelton, was out shopping for supplies at Sam’s Club. In an interview with First Alert 4, Harry recounted the devastating moment he received the call about his wife’s dire situation. “They said, when you hear this, just get there,” he recalled. “That’s the kind of news you get that she didn’t make it.”

In his lawsuit, Harry contends that the church was aware of the building’s need for structural repairs and asserts it was not suitably fortified to endure such intense weather. His claims, as reported by the Daily Mail, highlight the preventable nature of the tragedy that took his wife’s life. Harry’s legal action seeks to hold the church accountable for the alleged negligence that led to this sorrowful outcome.

‘They said, when you hear this, just get there,’ he said. ‘So that’s the kind of news you get that she didn’t make it.’ 

Harry is now claiming the church knew the building needed structural repairs and was not adequate enough to withstand a strong storm, he said in a lawsuit viewed by the Daily Mail. 

‘The church building was poorly maintained and structurally defective,’ the lawsuit, filed days before the one-year anniversary, said. 

The father accused the church of knowing its steeple was ‘inadequately bonded without mortar and/or crumbly mortar.’ 

‘The structure was not in reasonably safe condition and therefore created a dangerous condition,’ Harry alleged in court documents.

Patricia Penelton, 74, died when a tornado struck a St Louis church, causing the steeple to fall on her, last year. Above, with her husband Harry, who is taking legal action over her death

The Centennial Christian Church of St Louis was reduced to rubble in May last year

Harry also blamed the City of St Louis for not sounding tornado sirens, leaving his wife – the only one who died at the church – with no time to find an appropriate shelter before the twister devastated the church, which opened in 1904. 

An August report found that 22 of the city’s 60 tornado sirens did not go off on May 16 last year, for ‘various reasons,’ according to Fox 2 Now.  

The tornado left massive piles of bricks in the church’s front courtyard and around the building. The steeple was nearly completely torn down, while the side of the building and the roof suffered significant damage. 

The church was demolished last month. The congregation plans to rebuild a new building on the same site. 

Despite the church being able to rebuild stronger, Harry has felt his life ‘stop’ after Penelton’s death. The couple had been married for 54 years, he told First Alert 4. 

‘You just sit there in a daze, even at the house, thinking about how you miss her,’ he said. ‘Everything just hits, everything just stops.

‘I feel upset and, you know, lonely.’  

He is now asking for a trial by jury and to be awarded $25,000 in damages for his wife’s death, which has left him in mental anguish, the lawsuit said. 

The church’s roof, steeple, and side wall suffered significant damage 

Harry has accused the church of knowing there was a need for structural repairs prior to the storm, according to a lawsuit 

The tornado that struck St Louis on that fateful day caused more than $1.6 billion in damage. 

The church plans to rebuild on the same site, which will include affordable housing, a health clinic and a soup kitchen. 

Patricia helped the church’s soup kitchen before her death, serving tens of thousands of meals to the hungry residents of St Louis. 

Harry said his wife’s work with the church’s food ministry made him proudest. 

One of his fondest memories is a cold day when he and his wife came to the church to feed people, despite many not coming in because of the extreme weather. But Patricia was insistent they go anyway, because ‘people need to eat.’ They served around 40 people, he told First Alert 4. 

A year later, Harry still helps with food kitchens in honor of his late wife.

The community still mourns the loss of Patricia, a prominent figure at the church. 

Harry said churchgoers would call the congregation before their house phone if they needed either him or ‘Miss Pat,’ which is why he now jokes she had to take the church with her when she went. 

Patricia was an active member in the church since the 1980s, helping in the food ministry as well as being in the choir

Harry is also accusing the city of not sounding the fire alarms, leaving his wife without adequate time to find shelter 

‘She’s still truly remembered in this neighborhood and in the city in general, those who knew her,’ Harry told First Alert 4. 

‘She was a diamond in the rough that people got to know. And no one was a stranger to her.’ 

The Texas native is remembered for her deep sense of devotion and her life’s work to uplift others, her obituary said. 

She and Harry met at Texas A&I University, where she received an English degree. They married in 1970. 

Penelton worked as an English teacher for many years before transitioning to AT&T, where she worked as an operations manager until she retired in 2003. 

She would later go back to work for Charter Communications before finally retiring in 2018. 

Penelton was known for her deep faith, which was a ‘cornerstone of her life.’ 

The church before the storm. The site was demolished last month and a new one will be built

She and Harry became devout members of Centennial when they moved to St Louis in 1986. She served as a church moderator, deacon, usher and educator. 

She and Harry were also members of the church choir. She also sang with the St Louis Symphony Orchestra for 27 years. 

‘While her physical presence will be deeply missed, her love and dedication remain an everlasting light in our hearts. 

‘Her legacy of leadership and service will forever inspire those who had the privilege of knowing her,’ her obituary read.

The Daily Mail has reached out to the church for comment. The city does not comment on pending litigation.