An American Legion post and a car wash were flattened, while a church and a medical clinic sustained major damage. Concrete floor slabs were torn from the foundation of one home and shattered, while the paved driveway of another residence was cracked and scoured. Local residents walk past the scene of a train derailment after a devastating outbreak of tornadoes ripped through several states in Earlington, Ky., on Dec. 11, 2021. Turn on desktop notifications for breaking stories about interest? An RV camper was thrown 30 yards (27m) in this area as well, landing upside down, while tractors and large hay bales were also thrown considerable distances. About. A violent, long-track tornado entered Fulton County in western Kentucky from Obion County in northwest Tennessee shortly before 9:00 p.m. CST. Kentucky Gov . Please try another search. On Thursday, the National Weather Service tweeted that the portion of the tornado that traveled through through Western Kentucky was given a preliminary damage rating of EF4. [63] On December 15, Mayor of Mayfield Kathy Stewart ONan said that recovery efforts would continue. Click here for an interactive StoryMap about the tornado outbreak that occurred across the region. Tornadoes were also confirmed on the ground in Mayfield, Kentucky, at about 9:30 p.m. local time and in Princeton, Kentucky, just after 10 p.m. Additionally dozens of vehicles were tossed hundreds of yards from the buildings parking lot. MAYFIELD, Ky., Dec 11 (Reuters) - At least 100 people were feared dead in Kentucky after a swarm of tornadoes tore a 200-mile path through the U.S. Midwest and South, demolishing homes,. However, the National Weather Service did not confirm this.[48][49]. Its 165.7 mile long path length was on the longest for a tornado in U.S. history. At least 74 people in Kentucky have died after a weekend tornado outbreak across eight states flattened homes and businesses in the Midwest and South. Also, the fast forward speed of the tornado had little dwell time of strong winds over a building and thus, the damage likely would have been more severe if the tornado were slower.[59], The Western Kentucky tornado killed 57 people and resulted in between 508 and 533 injuries (according to figures from the National Weather Service in Paducah, Kentucky). December 13, 2021: HQ-21-260: Release Date: . ", "We're going to get through this together and the federal government is not going to walk away," Biden said. The tornado moved northeast, uprooting and snapping numerous trees along its path. Despite a COVID-19 surge in Kentucky, Beshear said hospitals were in good shape. Hundreds of trees were downed in this area, and a couple of structures sustained minor damage. Deaths: 11 In southern Illinois, in Edwardsville, an Amazon distribution warehouse was hit by a tornado, causing massive damage to the facility, officials said. [8] Though this activity lacked much vigor at its onset due to a strong capping inversion,[9] the convective cells began to show organization as they progressed eastward. Injuries: 200 to 225 Courtesy of Ohio Valley Aerial. After moving northeast a half mile (0.8km), it crossed the TennesseeKentucky state line near the community of State Line in Fulton County, causing additional EF0 tree damage. In all, the tornado covered over 165 miles in about three hours, claiming 57 lives and injuring over 500 people. occurred to several homes, farm outbuildings, and structures on Palmyra Road. Tornado Watch Issued Friday; After crossing Kentucky Lake, the tornado thrashed across the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area, where thousands of trees were ravaged. [26][56] The path was the ninth longest in recorded history. In all, there were 15 fatalities, 200 injuries, and over 1500 damaged structures in Hopkins County. Mayfield, with a population of about 10,000, is in Graves County, which borders Tennessee. Moving northeast, the tornado raced through Graves County, reaching the city of Mayfield at 9:26 p.m. Mayfield experienced profound damage, including the near-total destruction of Mayfields downtown historic district. Complete destruction of homes on Bethlehem Cemetery Road in Bremen. No deaths or injuries. Numerous large trees were snapped, denuded, and debarked, and vehicles were thrown in this area. Alejandro Mayorkas visited affected areas of Kentucky Sunday to see tornado destruction firsthand and meet with first responders and emergency management officials conducting operations throughout the state. Passing near the MuhlenbergMcLean county line, the tornado weakened substantially as it crossed into Ohio County at 11:10p.m. (05:10 UTC), producing EF1 damage as it traversed rugged, hilly terrain to the west of Centertown. "We are strong, resilient people, and we will be there every step of the way.". Emergency Management director Michael Hennigan remembers it . (Photo from @MeanMotionMedia ) shows a possible second vortex to the left", "This is looking SSW just as the tornado was entering Dawson Springs. Structures damaged: 81 [69] In December 2022, a temporary memorial was placed in the Mayfield court square. Forest destruction in the Land Between the Lake NRA. Cars were thrown hundreds of yards and mangled. . ), 12 dic (EFE).- Pasadas 24 horas desde que un poderoso tornado asol la pequea localidad estadounidense de Mayfield, en Kentucky, el rescate contina en lo que era una . A few farm outbuildings were also damaged or destroyed in this area. Observations More than half of Kentucky's 120 counties did not have a dedicated OB-GYN in 2020 and 2021. A church and a business were damaged nearby, and further weakening occurred further to the northeast, where EF0 to EF1 damage to trees and structures was noted. Tornado #3 - EF-1Tornado near Central City, KY. A relatively weak and short-lived tornado occurred on the evening of December 10, 2021,in central Muhlenberg County prior to the larger and more powerful EF-4 tornado in northern parts of the county. Drought Damaged homes on US 62 west of Dawson Springs in Lyon County. WFO Paducah Navigator The EF-3 tornado had peak winds of at least 155 mph, according to the National Weather Service. Residential areas in the northern part of Dawson Springs were devastated, with entire blocks of homes destroyed, many of which were leveled or swept from their foundations. Our Office [37] 22 people were killed in and around Mayfield, with hundreds more injured, many severely.[38][39][40][26]. A hangar and some small airplanes were destroyed at the Mayfield Graves County Airport, and multiple homes were badly damaged. The death toll in the "most severe tornado event in Kentucky's history" may end up "exceeding 100 before the day is done," Beshear said. After the dissipation of that tornado in Obion County northeast of Samburg, the supercell produced three weak, brief tornadoes before this one formed several miles to the northeast. This is a screen grab from video on my dash camera. Hourly Forecasts FEMA was advising residents from east-central Mississippi to extreme southwestern Virginia to stay vigilant as the storm system moved east. [1] Crossing through eleven counties of the Jackson Purchase and Western Coal Field regions during its lifespan, the tornado was exceptionally long-tracked, traveling 165.6 miles (266.5km) while at times becoming wrapped in rain. (NOAA/NASA), Before and after satellite imagery of the Cambridge Shores community on Kentucky Lake in Marshall County. South of Earlington, the tornado derailed a train, moving several rail cars several feet up an embankment next to the railroad tracks. (NWS Storm Survey). Kentucky tornadoes: governor says death toll expected to grow as crews sift through ruins. [65] The NWS office in Paducah requested mental health officers be there to assist the meteorologists due to potential trauma from assessing the path of devastation from the tornado. It then continued to travel northeast where it passed Indian Branch and Morgan Branch where it continued to uproot trees and destroyed some farm outbuildings, lifted the roofs off of some single and double wide mobile homes and completely flattened some barns and single wide structures. The tornado reached Hickman County at 9:06 p.m., where the tornado damaged 40 buildings, with at least 12 buildings completely destroyed. Structures destroyed: 12, Graves County, KY: [34][35] Most of the structures in downtown Mayfield were heavily damaged or destroyed, including multiple large, well-built, multi-story brick buildings that completely collapsed. Perhaps relevant to the deadly toll in the Kentucky event, tornado frequency is increasing in winter months, . In addition to Edwardsville, two EF-3 tornadoes were confirmed in Bowling Green, Kentucky, and near Defiance, Missouri, according to the National Weather Service. The storms caused tornadoes to form in the early evening hours west of Kentucky. Snowfall After crossing Lake Barkley, the tornado weakened to EF3 strength but continued to cause major damage as it crossed KY 93 and I-24 near the eastern shore of the lake, where many additional homes sustained major damage or were destroyed, including several that were leveled or swept from their foundations. (Chris Conley), Aerial footage of damage in Dawson Springs. The most severe damage in Caldwell County occurred as the tornado passed just south of Princeton. The tornado initially caused minor damage to trees and roofs as it moved through the north side of Woodland Mills, crossing SR 5. [18][19], The SPC issued a record-setting 43 mesoscale discussions (MCD) throughout the course of the day (12 UTC December 10 to 12 UTC December 11), all of which were associated with the broader storm system: 38 of the MCDs issued were convective discussions relating to the severe thunderstorm activity, and five were non-convective discussions relating to heavy snow associated with the system that concurrently fell throughout much of the Upper Midwest. The freight train was carrying hazardous materials, Beshear wrote in his letter asking for a federal emergency declaration. A music venue housed in an old school building was badly damaged, and the Cayce Volunteer Fire Department building was totally destroyed, with the metal beams of the structure being severely twisted, while pieces of heavy machinery were tossed around.