The commissioner of the St. Louis City Emergency Management Agency, Sarah Russell, has been placed on paid administrative leave after failing to sound the warning siren during the tornadoes last Friday that killed five people.

The city learned of possible tornadoes Friday afternoon, but the city's emergency officials didn't push the button to sound outdoor warning sirens because they were out of the office at a workshop.

St. Louis' emergency management chief has been placed on administrative leave, the city's mayor said, after sirens meant to sound during a tornado warning failed to be activated ahead of a deadly twister.