AGENCIES/ WEB DESK
Dozens of people have been killed in different parts of the United States, following a series of massive unseasonal tornadoes that hit several Southern and Midwestern locations Friday.
The tornadoes left behind a path of destruction from weather conditions that usually appear in spring. Authorities say they expect the death toll to rise.
As of Saturday night, at least 36 people were confirmed dead across the five states: 22 in Kentucky, six in Illinois at an Amazon facility, four in Tennessee, two in Arkansas and two in Missouri.
According to early reports, the tornado raced across Kentucky for about 320 kilometers. But Victor Genzini, a researcher on extreme weather at Northern Illinois University, said it may have been on the ground for 400 kilometers. The longest twister on record tracked for about 355 kilometers across Missouri, Illinois and Indiana in March 1925.
The tornado in Mayfield was one of at least four that devastated at least 10 counties in Kentucky.
The governor of Kentucky said Saturday that it is likely that at least 70-100 people had died there.
A candle factory in Mayfield, Kentucky, was destroyed by tornadoes. Forty people were rescued from the factory’s rubble. Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said it would be “a miracle” if any other survivors are found in the factory’s remains.
Jeremy Creason, the city’s fire chief and EMS director, said, “We had to, at times, crawl over casualties to get to live victims.”
“This has been the most devastating tornado event in our state’s history,” Beshear said at a news conference.
Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker said Saturday that six people were killed when a tornado hit an Amazon warehouse in the middle of a shift change Friday night, collapsing the building. Because of the shift change, authorities do not know if anyone is still unaccounted for.
“This is a devastating tragedy for our Amazon family and our focus is on supporting our employees and partners,” Amazon spokesperson Richard Rocha said in a written statement.
U.S. President Joe Biden has spoken to the governors of the five states hit by the tornadoes: Arkansas, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, and Tennessee. Biden has approved an emergency declaration for Kentucky, allowing the use of federal funds there.
Biden tweeted Saturday that he was briefed on the situations and said his administration is “working with Governors to ensure they have what they need as the search for survivors and damage assessments continue.”