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Dozens Dead, Injured After Historic Tornado Outbreak

By Jan Wesner Childs

December 12, 2021

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At a Glance

  • Five hundred homes destroyed in one county.
  • President Biden issued a federal emergency declaration.
  • Kentucky governor says this is the 'most devastating tornado event in our state's history.'
  • Forty of 110 workers rescued at candle factory.
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Dozens of people are dead and search efforts ongoing after a historic tornado outbreak and rounds of severe weather ripped through several states Friday and Saturday.

Bodies were pulled from a candle factory destroyed in Kentucky, and deaths confirmed at an Amazon facility that was ripped apart in Illinois and a nursing home that was hit in Arkansas.

Deaths were also confirmed in Tennessee and Missouri.

Here's a round up of some of the biggest headlines from Saturday:

Hundreds of Homes, Businesses Destroyed in Warren County, Kentucky

Officials were assessing the damage in Bowling Green and surrounding areas in Warren County.

Some 500 homes and 100 businesses were destroyed, according to numbers announced during a news conference with the governor late Saturday afternoon.

Family Members Keep Vigil at Factory Site

Denise Johnson Williams, a 50-year-old mother of four, was among those still missing at the candle factory in Mayfield, Kentucky.

Her family waited Saturday at the site for any news.

“It’s Christmastime and she works at a place that’s making candles for gifts," her brother, Darryl Williams, told The Associated Press. “To give up the gift of life to make a gift. We haven’t heard anything, and I’m not presuming anything. But I’m expecting for the worst.”

Emergency workers search through what is left of the Mayfield Consumer Products Candle Factory after it was destroyed by a tornado in Mayfield, Kentucky, on December 11, 2021. (Photo by John Amis / AFP) (Photo by JOHN AMIS/AFP via Getty Images)
Emergency workers search through what is left of the Mayfield Consumer Products Candle Factory after it was destroyed by a tornado in Mayfield, Kentucky, on December 11, 2021. (Photo by John Amis / AFP)
(Photo by JOHN AMIS/AFP via Getty Images)

Federal Emergency Declared

President Joe Biden issued a federal disaster declaration for more than a dozen counties in Kentucky, authorizing the Federal Emergency Management Agency to coordinate all disaster relief efforts.

Counties under the declaration include Breckenridge, Bullitt, Caldwell, Fulton, Graves, Grayson, Hickman, Hopkins, Lyon, Meade, Muhlenberg, Ohio, Shelby, Spencer, and Warren

Governor: 40 of 110 Workers Rescued from Candle Factory

Seventy people remained missing at the facility in Mayfield, Kentucky.

"There’s at least 15 feet of metal with cars on top of it – barrels of corrosive chemicals that are there," Gov. Andy Beshear said in a late afternoon news conference. "It'll be a miracle if anyone else is found alive."

Emergency workers search through what is left of the Mayfield Consumer Products Candle Factory after it was destroyed by a tornado in Mayfield, Kentucky, on December 11, 2021. (Photo by John Amis / AFP) (Photo by JOHN AMIS/AFP via Getty Images)
Emergency workers search through what is left of the Mayfield Consumer Products Candle Factory after it was destroyed by a tornado in Mayfield, Kentucky, on December 11, 2021. (Photo by John Amis / AFP)
(Photo by JOHN AMIS/AFP via Getty Images)

Dozen People Confirmed Dead in Bowling Green, Kentucky

At least 12 people died in Bowling Green, Kentucky, where roofs were ripped off buildings, trees uprooted and homes left in splintered ruins.

Warren County Coroner Kevin Irby confirmed 11 deaths late Saturday afternoon, and said children were among the victims. Those were in addition to one death announced earlier.

The National Weather Service confirmed an EF3 tornado in the area.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear estimates between 70 and 100 people - or more - may be dead statewide.

“Beginning late last night and through the very moment that we are standing here, we have lived through some of the toughest hours of our lives as Kentuckians," Beshear said in a late afternoon news conference. “This event is the worst, most devastating most deadly tornado event in Kentucky’s history."

The governor added: "It's not just because of the property damage. We lost a lot of good people, too ... We are going to have lost people of all ages. We are going to lose entire families."

A Bowling Green, Kentucky, resident surveys the damage following a tornado that struck the area on December 11, 2021. (Photo by Gunnar Word / AFP) (Photo by GUNNAR WORD/AFP via Getty Images)
A Bowling Green, Kentucky, resident surveys the damage following a tornado that struck the area on December 11, 2021. (Photo by Gunnar Word / AFP)
(Photo by GUNNAR WORD/AFP via Getty Images)

Photo Found in Indiana May Have Been Carried More than 125 Miles

A woman in New Albany, Indiana, said she found a photo stuck to the window of her car Saturday. She posted it on social media, and online sleuths jumped in to help find the owner, based on information written on the back of the black-and-white picture.

In an update, Katie Posten said she had been connected with a member of the family that the photo belongs to. They're from hard-hit Dawson Springs, Kentucky, about 127 miles southwest of New Albany, which is just across the Ohio River from Louisville.

Posten is making plans to return the photo later this week.

Bodies Pulled From Candle Factory Rubble

Bodies were pulled from the ruins of the crushed candle factory in Mayfield, Kentucky, but the exact number wasn't yet known, Kentucky State Police Trooper Sarah Burgess said, according to The Associated Press.

Search and rescue teams were still combing through the rubble.

“We just can’t confirm a number right now because we are still out there working, and we have so many agencies involved in helping us,” Burgess said.

She said heavy equipment was being used to move rubble and coroners were called to the scene.

Amazon Confirms Deaths At Illinois Facility

“We’re deeply saddened by the news that members of our Amazon family passed away as a result of the storm in Edwardsville, Ill.,” Kelly Nantel, an Amazon spokeswoman, said in a statement on Saturday, according to The New York Times. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their loved ones and everyone impacted by the tornado.”

Police in Edwardsville earlier said an unspecified number of people died when an Amazon building lost its roof and sustained other serious damage Friday night. A wall the size of a football field collapsed at the property, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.

Edwardsville is about 25 miles east of St. Louis and is home to at least two Amazon warehouses

'Toughest Day of My Life'

Local officials at a press conference with Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear became emotional talking about the damage in and around Mayfield.

"This is probably the toughest day of my life," Graves County Executive Judge Jesse Perry said, his voice breaking. "The only thing I can say to you all, at this time, what we need from everyone ... We need your prayers, we need your help."

Kentucky Governor: More than 100 Feared Dead

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"This has been the most devastating tornado event in our state’s history … The level of devastation is unlike anything I have ever seen," Gov. Andy Beshear said in a news conference in Mayfield at around 11 a.m.

Earlier, the governor estimated that between 50 and 100 were killed, including at a candle factory in Mayfield where more than 100 were working when the storm hit late Friday night.

"I’m now certain that number is north of 70. It may in fact end up exceeding 100 before the day is done," Beshear said. "The damage is even worse now that we have first light."

The governor said he expected a federal emergency declaration within the hour.

An aerial view of homes and business destroyed by a tornado on December 11, 2021 in Mayfield, Kentucky. Multiple tornadoes touched down in several midwestern states late Friday evening causing widespread destruction and leaving an estimated 70-plus people dead.   (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
An aerial view of homes and business destroyed by a tornado on December 11, 2021 in Mayfield, Kentucky. Multiple tornadoes touched down in several midwestern states late Friday evening causing widespread destruction and leaving an estimated 70-plus people dead.
(Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

Drone Footage Shows Nursing Home Devastation

Parts of the roof and walls were torn off when a tornado struck the Monette Manor nursing home in Monette, Arkansas, about 20 miles east of Jonesboro.

At least one person was killed there and five injured, and an emergency management operator for the Craighead County, where the nursing home is located, told weather.com Friday night that there was extensive damage in the area.

At least one other death was confirmed, at a Dollar General store in the nearby town of Leachville.

Hundreds of Thousands of Power Outages

Some 500,000 homes and business were without power in a band of eight states from Michigan to Arkansas as of about 10:45 a.m., according to poweroutage.us. The highest numbers were in Tennessee (143,000), one of the states hit by overnight severe weather, and Michigan (118,000), which has been pummeled by high winds throughout the day.

The number of outages in Michigan later surged above 300,000.

Where is Severe Weather Headed Next?

The storms and tornadoes were part of a winter storm named Atticus by The Weather Channel.

The storm continued to trek east Saturday but with a much more isolated tornado and damaging wind threat, weather.com digital meteorologist Jonathan Belles said.

The threat stretched from the Deep South to the mid-Atlantic in the morning and afternoon hours.

Read more about the storm's forecast here.

Search and Rescue Efforts Ongoing at Kentucky Candle Factory

The Weather Channel Meteorologist Chris Bruin said it was hard to find the words to describe the scene in Mayfield.

“There were tons of vehicles just thrown like toys," Bruin said of the drive into town, adding that tractor dealerships were destroyed and semis blown over along the highway.

The candle factory, where rescuers were still searching through debris, is about a mile outside of downtown, and damage stretches across the area.

Mayfield, a town of about 10,000 people, is located in western Kentucky.

Roofs Ripped Off, Buildings Gone

Devastating photos are just beginning to show the damage across several states.

Kitty Williams holds up a sign that survived the storm as her friends and family help gather her belongings after extreme weather hit the area, in Bowling Green, Kentucky, on Monday, Dec. 13, 2021. (GUNNAR WORD/AFP via Getty Images)
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Kitty Williams holds up a sign that survived the storm as her friends and family help gather her belongings after extreme weather hit the area, in Bowling Green, Kentucky, on Monday, Dec. 13, 2021. (GUNNAR WORD/AFP via Getty Images)

State of Emergency Declared in Kentucky

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear issued a state of emergency and requested a federal emergency declaration.

Much of Mayfield, Kentucky, Flattened

Daytime images were just starting to emerge as of about 8 a.m. EST, painting a devastating picture of damage in Mayfield, where a candle factory was destroyed, the town's courthouse was heavily damaged and homes and other buildings were ripped apart.

Kentucky Governor Says 50 to 100 People Likely Dead

“It’s been one of the toughest nights in Kentucky history and some areas have been hit in ways that are hard to put into words," Gov. Andy Beshear said in a news conference.

More than 100 people were working in a factory in Mayfield that was ripped apart.

“There were about 110 people in it at the time that the tornado hit it,” Beshear said. “We believe we’ll lose at least dozens of those individuals. It’s very hard, really tough, and we’re praying for each and every one of those families.”

Police Say People Killed at Amazon Warehouse

An Amazon distribution center is heavily damaged after a severe storm moved through the area Friday, Dec. 10, 2021, in Edwardsville, Illinois. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
An Amazon distribution center is heavily damaged after a severe storm moved through the area Friday, Dec. 10, 2021, in Edwardsville, Illinois.
(AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Police in Edwardsville, Illinois, said there were fatalities at the Amazon warehouse that was ripped apart during the storms. There was no word yet on the exact number.

Storm Debris Blocks Roadway at Nashville Airport

The road to departures at Nashville International Airport was blocked by debris and closed early Saturday morning, according to a tweet from the airport.

Winter Storms Can Have a Severe Side

The storm, named Atticus by The Weather Channel, brought severe weather, high winds, snow and rain as it trekked east.

It delivered the first measurable snow of the season Thursday and Friday to areas including Salt Lake City and Denver. Snow was estimated up to 3 feet in some spots in the mountains of southern Wyoming and Colorado.

In Minnesota, the state patrol responded to more than 136 crashes as of 4 p.m. Friday and more than 200 flights were canceled at Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport. More than 20 inches of snow fell in some areas, including the Twin Cities.

It's not unusual for severe weather to accompany a winter storm's warmer side.

"Winter storms often produce strong to severe thunderstorms by pulling moist, warm and buoyant air northward from the Gulf of Mexico," weather.com meteorologist Jonathan Belles said. "Those thunderstorms feed on the jet stream that fuels the storm system, growing taller and more tilted, and the storms are eventually pushed to spin by a change in winds from the ground to the jet stream level."

Click here to see what happened as the storms and tornadoes were hitting late Friday night and into early Saturday morning.

The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.

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