UNIVERSITY CITY, Mo. — It's been more than a month since historic rainfall and flooding, but the recovery is far from over.
Federal agencies are still on the ground working daily to get flood victims much-needed help.
The disaster recovery center at Centennial Commons in University City opened up on Friday, Aug. 26.
A FEMA Media Specialist told 5 On Your Side that about 50 people showed up before 3 p.m. on that opening day.
La-Tanga Hopes with the federal agency said demand has stayed consistent over the center's first weekend.
"We're here as a guest from the state, we're here to support them in that recovery process, and as long as there's a need, we'll be here to support you in that endeavor," she said.
That need is still great in University City, too.
If you drive through some areas, you'll see personal items destroyed from historic rainfall and flooding, sitting along neighborhood streets.
Long-time University City resident Gwendolyn Redding is one of the many flood victims in the area.
"It happened the 26th of July, but it's going to last for a long time, for people to be able to stand up and be OK and move forward," she said.
This is the second time Redding has dealt with a flood, but this time around it was worse.
The rushing waters completely damaged her home and left it unlivable.
"Most of our things were lost, and they are things, but we're glad that we're here, but there's a lot of regrouping that has to be done," Redding said.
Part of that regrouping meant going to the Disaster Recovery Center on Sunday afternoon.
Redding and her daughter are two of the more than 6,700 people FEMA officials have seen, since arriving in Missouri, according to Hopes.
"We're doing about 335 people a day, and we think that we might be able to do a bit more," she said.
Hopes said FEMA has approved more than $22.6 million in grants and that's just the beginning.
"There's other funding that may be available to you, that you've limited yourself and cut yourself off from, so just go through the process. It's worth it," she said.
While Redding is grateful for the help, she said, this is a recovery process that's going to take the whole community.
"We can move forward, if we move forward together. Without each other, it's gonna be a hard task, so we need everybody to come together," she said.
Centers also remain open in St. Louis City, Hazelwood and St. Charles until further notice.
All of the centers are open seven days a week from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.
According to Hopes, FEMA is still talking with state and local officials about opening more centers in other areas, based on community needs.
If you can't make it to a recovery center, you can apply online here, or call 800-621-FEMA.