LONDON, Ky. — Storms that swept across part of the Midwest and South killed least 27 people including 18 in Kentucky, where another 10 were hospitalized in critical condition, authorities said.
A devastating tornado in Kentucky damaged homes, tossed vehicles and left many people homeless. Seventeen of the deaths were in Laurel County, located in the state’s southeast, and one was in Pulaski County: Fire Department Maj. Roger Leslie Leatherman, a 39-year veteran who was fatally injured while responding to the deadly weather.
Parts of two dozen state roads were closed, and some could take days to reopen, according to Gov. Andy Beshear, who announced the toll of dead and critically injured on Saturday. He also said the death toll could still rise.
“We need the whole world right now to be really good neighbors to this region,” the governor said.State Emergency Management Director Eric Gibson said hundreds of homes were damaged,
Kayla Patterson, her husband and their five children huddled in a tub in their basement in London, the county seat, as the tornado raged around them.
“You could literally hear just things ripping in the distance, glass shattering everywhere, just roaring like a freight train,” she recalled Saturday. “It was terrible.”
The family eventually emerged to the sounds of sirens and panicked neighbors. While the family’s own home was spared, others right behind it were demolished, Patterson said.
Rescuers searched for survivors all night and into the morning, the sheriff’s office said. An emergency shelter was set up at a high school and donations of food and other necessities were arriving.
Resident Chris Cromer said he got the first of two alerts on his phone around 11:30 p.m., about a half-hour before the tornado struck. He and his wife grabbed their dog, jumped in their car and sought shelter in the crawlspace at a relative’s nearby home because their own crawlspace is small.
“We could hear and feel the vibration of the tornado coming through,” said Cromer, 46. A piece of his roof was ripped off, and windows were broken, but homes around his were destroyed.
“It’s one of those things that you see on the news in other areas, and you feel bad for people — then, when it happens, it’s just surreal,” he said. “It makes you be thankful to be alive, really.”
The storm was the latest severe weather to cause deaths and widespread damage in Kentucky. Two months ago at least 24 people died in a round of storms that swelled creeks and submerged roads.
Missouri pounded by storms, with deaths confirmed in St. Louis
About 1,200 tornadoes strike the U.S. annually, and they have been reported in all 50 states over the years. Researchers found in 2018 that deadly tornadoes were happening less frequently in the traditional “Tornado Alley” of Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas and more frequently in parts of the more densely populated and tree-filled mid-South area.
The latest Kentucky storms were part of a weather system Friday that killed seven in Missouri and two in northern Virginia, authorities said. The system also spawned tornadoes in Wisconsin, brought punishing heat to Texas and temporarily enveloped parts of Illinois — including Chicago — in a pall of dust on an otherwise sunny day.
In St. Louis, Mayor Cara Spencer said five people died, 38 were injured and more than 5,000 homes were affected.
“The devastation is truly heartbreaking,” she said at a news conference Saturday. An overnight curfew was to continue in the most damaged neighborhoods.
Weather service radar indicated a likely tornado touched down between 2:30 p.m. and 2:50 p.m. in Clayton, Missouri, in the area of Forest Park, which is home to the St. Louis Zoo and formerly hosted both the 1904 World’s Fair and the Olympic Games in 1904.
Three people needed aid after part of the Centennial Christian Church crumbled, according to St. Louis Fire Battalion Chief William Pollihan.
Stacy Clark said his mother-in-law, Patricia Penelton, died in the church. He described her as a very active church volunteer who had many roles, including being part of the choir.
