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.
Another resident, Chris Cromer, said he got the first of two tornado alerts on his phone around 11.30pm on Friday (Kentucky time) 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 of a relative’s nearby home because their own is small.
A vehicle is covered in debris after a severe storm.Credit: AP
“We could hear and feel the vibration of the tornado coming through,” said Cromer, 46. A piece of their roof was ripped off, and windows were broken, but other homes nearby 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.
Beshear said that since he became governor in 2019, he had dealt with at least 14 federally declared disasters, all but one of them weather-related. He called Friday’s tornado and storms “one of the worst”.
“This seems to be the new normal that Kentucky is facing,” he said.
Missouri pounded by storms, with deaths confirmed in St Louis
About 1200 tornadoes strike the US 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.
The latest Kentucky storms were part of a weather system that killed seven in Missouri and two in northern Virginia, authorities said. It also caused 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.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear gives an update on the recovery efforts. Credit: AP
“Well that was … something,” the weather service’s Chicago office wrote on X after issuing its first-ever dust storm warning for the city. Thunderstorms in central Illinois pushed strong winds over dry, dusty farmland and northward into the Chicago area, the agency said.
In St Louis, Mayor Cara Spencer said five people died, 38 were injured and more than 5000 homes were affected.
“The devastation is truly heartbreaking,” she said at a news conference. An overnight curfew was to continue in the most damaged neighbourhoods.
Weather service radar indicated a likely tornado touched down between 2.30pm and 2.50pm in Clayton, Missouri, in the St Louis area. The area of Forest Park is home to the St Louis Zoo and hosted both the World’s Fair and the Olympic Games in 1904.
Houses destroyed following severe weather in London, Kentucky.Credit: AP
Three people needed aid after part of the Centennial Christian Church crumbled, St Louis Fire Battalion Chief William Pollihan told The Associated Press.
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.
John Randle said he and his girlfriend were at the St Louis Art Museum and were moved into the basement with about 150 other people.
“You could see the doors flying open, tree branches flying by and people running,” said Randle, 19.
At the zoo, falling trees severely damaged the roof of a butterfly facility. Staffers quickly corralled most of the butterflies, the zoo said on social media, and a conservatory in suburban Chesterfield was caring for the displaced creatures.
A tornado struck in Scott County, about 209 kilometres south of St Louis, killing two people, injuring several others and destroying multiple homes, Sheriff Derick Wheetley reported.
Forecasters say severe weather could batter parts of the Plains
The weather service said supercells were likely to develop across parts of Texas and Oklahoma on Saturday afternoon before becoming a line of storms in southwest Oklahoma and parts of Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas on Saturday night.
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The biggest risks included hail up to 8.9 centimetres in size, along with damaging wind gusts and a few tornadoes.
The conditions were expected to continue on Sunday across parts of the Plains.
“Be prepared to take action if watches and warnings are issued for your area,” the weather service said.
AP
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