Amazing images capture the destruction caused by the nearly twenty tornadoes that swept through five Mississippi Valley states on Friday.
Mayfield was the epicenter of destruction, which is a small town with approximately 10,000 inhabitants in Kentucky’s far west, near the Bluegrass State bordering Illinois, Missouri, and Arkansas.
Whole blocks of land were crushed, buildings and homes torn apart and bricks left scattered on the streets.
This included the courthouse which was destroyed by tornadoes. This historic landmark was built in 1903.
After Friday’s severe tornado damage, the courthouse of Mayfield in Kentucky was damaged.
Andy Beshear of Kentucky stated that at the midday briefing on Saturday, the death rate was currently ‘northern 70’ but could increase to over 100 by Sunday.
He said, “This will be, i believe, the most deadly tornado system ever to run through Kentucky,” he continued. “It’s inexplicable. It is unimaginable the devastation it causes.
A view looking up at Mayfield, showing roofs that were torn by the tornado.
While 110 workers were there, the roof of the candle factory in Mayfield, Kentucky collapsed. By Saturday midday, only 40 people had been saved.
According to Beshear, the roof of Mayfield’s candle factory fell on its roof. This resulted in “mass casualties.” According to Beshear, 110 workers were at the factory and only 40 of them had been saved from the rubble by midday on Saturday.
Authorities in Illinois reported that at least two people are dead, and as many as 50 were trapped by a collapsed roof at the Amazon warehouse close to St. Louis on Friday night. The incident occurred after strong thunderstorms and tornadoes hit the region.
According to authorities, at most two of the victims were killed and at least 50 others were left trapped by the roof that collapsed in an Amazon warehouse located near St. Louis.
“We are going to lose many lives at that facility. Although I hope for an additional rescue or two, it is a dire situation right now, the governor expressed his deepest emotions.
View of Monette manor nursing home, Arkansas. One resident died.
Arkansas nursing home Monette Manor, where one person was murdered and other structures nearby were destroyed
Satellite images depict the destruction of Monette farm structures
Satellite imagery shows the devastation of a Monette farm building. The debris can be seen scattered several feet away from the structure.
In southern Illinois, officials said that at most two of the victims were killed and 50 others were trapped when a roof fell on an Amazon warehouse in St. Louis. This happened late Friday as strong storms and tornadoes battered the area.
A further three people were killed in the severe weather in Tennessee, Dean Flener, spokesman for the state’s Emergency Management Agency said.
After Friday’s tornado, an aerial view shows the path of destruction leading to Mayfield in Kentucky.
Mayfield, Kentucky, whole blocks of land were destroyed, buildings and houses smashed apart and metal twisted and broken tree limbs left behind. Bricks littered the streets as a result of tornadoes that ravaged the region on Friday night.
After the destruction caused by tornadoes, downtown Mayfield has been left devastated
Mayfield Courthouse, Kentucky suffered severe damage from multiple tornadoes that struck the Midwest’s lower Midwest late Friday night. It left behind a huge path of destruction and unidentified fatalities.
The tornado aftermath at Mayfield, Kentucky is visible from the Emmanuel Baptist Church on Saturday morning
On Saturday, heavy damage was seen in Mayfield. This small, 10,000-person city is located in Kentucky’s far west, near the border of Illinois, Missouri, and Arkansas.
Governor Beshear said the damage was ‘some of the worst we’ve seen in a long time’ in the town of Mayfield (above Saturday)
On Saturday, a large semi-trailer is turned over and shoved against a building at Bowling Green. Multiple states were hit by severe weather, tornadoes, and other extreme weather on Friday night.
After a tornado that swept through Mayfield, Kentucky, heavy damage was done to the courthouse.
After a tornado ripped through Edwardsville in Illinois, at least two people died and several others were left trapped by a partially collapsed roof of this Amazon warehouse.
Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear stated Saturday that the death toll is now at ‘northern 70’, and could rise to ‘amounting 100’ before the day ends.
An outbreak of tornadoes was caused by a combination of storms that developed overnight in Northeast Arkansas. This storm moved across Arkansas, Missouri, into Tennessee and Kentucky.
“Unfortunately, it caused a few deadly tornadoes along its path.” Roger Edward, Storm Prediction Center meteorologist said that one of the tornadoes may have been long-track. “The fatal tornado was part”
According to the White House, President Joe Biden has been briefed regarding the destruction. Biden would also receive additional briefings during the day.
The White House stated that the president directed Federal resources to be immediately pumped to areas where the most need exists to relieve suffering from the devastating effects of these storms.
Numerous power outages caused widespread chaos, leaving hundreds of thousands without electricity throughout multiple states.
Speaking at a press conference early Saturday morning, Beshear said: ‘As of 4:45am [CST]56,854 Kentuckians have no power. Since around 1am, I’ve been at the emergency operation center overseeing the response.
Beshear stated that this was the hardest night in Kentucky history, and certain areas have been affected in difficult ways to explain.
He stated that he declared an emergency state before midnight. The national guard has been activated. There are 181 Guardsmen, including Search and Extract and Debris Clearing personnel.
He stated that search and rescue workers had been trying to save people in the rubble all night.
Beshear reported that 110 people were trapped in a candle-factory located nearby when the tornado tore through. It brought down the roof of the factory, leading to massive casualties.
It was busy at work, with three shifts per hour to fulfill Christmas orders. Early reports suggest that many people died.
Kyanna Parsons Perez was present at the factory and said that the roof fell soon after workers heard and felt the howling winds, and lights started flickering.
Parsons Perez stated to NBC that he could feel the wind, and that he then did a small rock. Then, boom! Everything fell upon us.
Social media photos and video showed downtown Mayfield’s brick buildings reduced to rubble and cars almost buried beneath bricks.
Photographs showed that the clock tower of Graves County’s Mayfield courthouse appeared to have fallen.
Mayfield’s Graves County courthouse appeared to have fallen from the clock tower.
In Earlington, Kentucky, a train that was damaged by tornadoes is visible derailment
The scene of a train derailment is pictured in Earlington, Kentucky after a devastating outbreak of tornadoes ripped through several U.S. states
Earlington residents in Kentucky pass the scene of a train accident after tornadoes left a path of destruction
A tornado caused severe damage to Mayfield, Kentucky’s downtown on Saturday.
After a tornado struck the Mayfield area, Mayfield’s city hall and police station are heavily damaged.
After the deadly tornadoes hit, Saturday’s damage to a Mayfield feed store was seen.
Bill Mosley and Bonnie Mosley walk together to assess the destruction while simultaneously carrying two guns. These were the only things he could recover from the loss of their Earlington home.
The car is located under a destroyed house in Campbellsville Kentucky, Saturday. On Friday, severe weather and tornadoes caused widespread destruction in multiple states.
In the meantime, more than 100 emergency vehicles rushed to the Amazon warehouse, near Edwardsville in Illinois. This is about 25 miles east St. Louis.
Although it was not immediately known how many were injured, one individual was transported by helicopter to the hospital.
Mike Fillback, Edwardsville Police Chief, stated that several individuals who had been in the building were transported by bus to Pontoon Beach’s police station for an evaluation.
Early Saturday morning rescue teams were still sorting through rubble trying to find anyone trapped within. Fillback stated that the rescue operation would continue for many hours. For the purpose of moving debris, cranes and backhoes have been brought in.
Please be patient. Fillback, KMOV TV said that firefighters are working hard to reunite people with loved ones.
Fillback said at a press conferance on Saturday that the Amazon facility had suffered’more than one death… at most two’.
Authorities are trying to determine how many people were in the building when it was damaged, he said. According to him, the figure was around 50.
In a statement sent to DailyMail.com, Kelly Nantel from Amazon stated that the loss of members of their Amazon family was devastating.
“Our thoughts, prayers, and condolences are with all those affected by this storm, including their families and loved ones. Thank you to all first responders who were on the scene. Nantel added that we will continue to support our partners and employees in this area.
According to The Belleville News-Democrat in 2016, Amazon opened Edwardsville with two warehouses, covering 1.5 million square footage. They are used for storing items before they can be shipped.
The Amazon fulfillment center in Edwardsville is badly damaged. This was taken Saturday, July 20, 2012. A large part of the roof collapsed and two people were killed in the storms that swept through the area on Friday night.
The workers use machinery to lift a section from the roof of a badly damaged Amazon fulfillment centre Saturday
Amazon’s distribution center collapsed partially after it was hit hard by winds Friday afternoon in Edwardsville.
After a tornado struck Edwardsville, debris lies around the delivery trucks at an Amazon.com warehouse that has been destroyed.
On Friday, first responders surrounded an Amazon Distribution Center in Edwardsville. The Distribution Center was hit by a tornado on Friday night, according to reports.
After a tornado ripped through Edwardsville in Illinois, emergency crews responded to the collapsed warehouse of Amazon.com
‘About a third of the warehouse is torn down and damaged from either straight by line winds or tornado,’ tweeted Jenna Rae, with Illinois’s KMOV station.
One woman stated that she was talking with a relative in the warehouse at the time the storm hit.
Aisha White stated to KMOV that he was talking on the phone while the event was taking place.
The tornado had struck the back of our building and trucks were approaching. He was told to duck by me.
“We saw the building rise, and stuff hit the cars. I said that I was going to go.”
J.B. Pritzker, governor of Illinois, tweeted: ‘My prayers are with the people of Edwardsville tonight, and I’ve reached out to the mayor to provide any needed state resources.’
Dean Flener (spokesman for Tennessee Emergency Management Agency) confirmed three storm-related deaths in Tennessee. The deaths of two victims occurred in Lake County and one in Obion County. Both are located in the northwest corner of Tennessee.
Dean Flener of Tennessee’s Emergency Management Agency stated that the weather caused severe weather in Tennessee and killed three people. This was according to comments made by The Washington Post.
According to Craighead County Judge Marvin Day, a tornado struck Arkansas’ Monette Manor Nursing Home on Friday night. It killed one person, trapped 20 others inside, and caused the structure to collapse.
He said that five people sustained serious injuries and some others suffered minor wounds. It has 86 rooms.
Day stated that a Truman nursing home was 20 miles from Truman. However, there were no reported injuries. Residents were evacuated from the unsafe building.
The tornado that struck near the Weldon Spring office of National Weather Service, Missouri was affecting workers. Two people were hurt and one person was killed in two building collapses that occurred near New Melle and Defiance, which are just a few minutes from the weather office.
A freight train operated by CSX was stranded in Kentucky due to storms. The New York Times reported that no injuries had been reported.
Bill Bunting was the Storm Prediction Center’s operations chief. The Storm Prediction Center is part of National Weather Service. According to the Times report, at least five states were struck by tornadoes. They are Illinois, Kentucky Tennessee Missouri, Missouri and Arkansas.
“It happens quickly but apparently it took a bit longer with the tornado sirens going off.”
He stated that some of the residents found in his basement were “prepared for it”
On Friday, large trees were uprooted. A dark shadow hovered over Mayfield in Kentucky.
After a tornado destroyed the center, Mayfield in Kentucky was left with devastation. The tower of the Victorian courthouse was torn down.
Kentucky town Mayfield was decimated (pictured). People caught inside the wreckage from a candle factory begged for help.
Arkansas tornadoes were captured in photographs posted online by Arkansas social media users on Friday night
Two people were killed in the nursing home collapse in Monette Arkansas. Emergency personnel responded quickly.
Melissa Moon, a journalist with WREG3, posted a picture of Monette Manor Nursing Home with what looked like a mangled mattress in its parking lot.
It was not known what the exact speed of the tornadoes was on Friday night. CNN stated that the tornadoes pounded five states with 19 each.
Reports suggested that 219 mile record could be broken for the longest tornado. It had also crossed 4 states and broke another record.
Observers suggested that tornadoes could have been as high as four to five feet on the Enhanced Fujita scale (EF).
EF4 tornadoes can reach speeds between 136-165mph, while EF5 tornadoes are capable of reaching winds of up to 200 m/s.
@WxAtlantic tweets: “This tornado is so strong that it literally broke Radarscope Velocity,”
“The couplet is just folding over because the delta velocity was so high.
Southern Illinois Fire Incidents, located almost 300 miles north of Monette confirmed that there was a “mass casualty” at Edwardsville’s Amazon warehouse. They also stated that more than 20 emergency response units were on the scene.
Kentucky’s Mayfield was also hard hit. It is home to approximately 10,000 people.
The roofs of buildings were removed; trees large and tall were uprooted. Storefronts had glass that was shattering, with debris all over the place.
This 1888-built courthouse was completely destroyed. The tower was removed and the roof torn off.
People were trapped inside the factory’s wall when it collapsed.
“We got hit with a hurricane-I’m at work, Mayfield, so we are trapped,” Kyanna Lou stated, broadcasting from darkened rooms via Facebook Live. A woman was behind Kyanna Lou and she was letting out mumbled moans and shouts.
‘Please, y’all. We need your help. We can help you at Mayfield candle factory.
“Please send some assistance. It is hidden behind me. Please pray for us. We need your prayers.
Her statement continued: “We were all in the safe refuge place. The whole building collapsed.” Now we are trapped.
Miguel Macias inspects the destruction to Emmanuel Baptist Church, where he sought shelter after the tornado that struck Mayfield, Kentucky.
Amazon’s Edwardsville warehouse, Illinois was photographed on Friday evening with its roof torn off following a tornado that ravaged the region.
The emergency crews tried to extricate those who were trapped in Amazon’s warehouse by using lightning bolts.
Mayfield KY storefronts were opened and the contents dumped onto the sidewalk
Callie Lemle was the wife of Jason Lemle (President of Graves County Economic Development), and told WPSD Friday that Jason Lemle had been at Mayfield Consumer Products’ candle factory.
According to her, people were excavating through rubble to rescue people and listening to their cries.
Her husband said that they were in dire need of more volunteers. Anyone with headlamps, gloves or equipment to dig is welcome.
Mayfield suffered the unfortunate distinction of being struck by the worst storms in recorded history, with debris reaching 30,000 feet up the sky, according to storm trackers.
Brett Adair, Live Storms Media said that Mayfield was the scene of ‘absolute destruction’.
Craig Ceecee was a Mississippi State meteorologist and researcher. He described the Mayfield tornado as one of the most intense recorded storms.
He described it as a’very violent tornado.
‘Communities being hit hard. It will be difficult to know the extent of it until tomorrow morning. It is important to remember and pray for all those affected by the tragedy,’ he said in a tweet.
And across the region, tornadoes on Friday night ripped through parts of Missouri, Arkansas, Tennessee and Kentucky – with one becoming what a storm chaser said was the first quad-state tornado in U.S. history.
Social media footage showed enormous swirling storm clouds that swept across the plains.
The tornado was photographed by storm chasers near Caruthersville, Missouri, on the I-55.
Video shows multiple semis being placed on their backs and then twisted into the road.
Chris Jackson is a storm chaser who has seen professional storm chasers lift tractor trailers from Steele Missouri and throw them into the air.
He tweeted, “A second tractor trailer has been picked up and thrown onto I-55 at exit 17”.
“Just talked to the driver. Minor cuts, but it is okay.
Jackson claimed that there were many emergency workers in the vicinity, flashing their lights as they tried to save people.
He claimed that the power was out along I-69 in Kentucky between Troy, Kentucky and Mayfield.
Mayfield, a town founded in the 19th century, was battered by storms.
The site was home to many Victorian structures, which were badly damaged. This included the Courthouse built in 1888, the fourth of its kind. The courthouse has been renovated since 1990.
According to Graves County’s economic development board, 35% of Mayfield residents are considered living in poverty.
On Friday night, the governor of Kentucky declared an emergency.
Andy Beshear called in the Kentucky Guard to activate the Kentucky State Police and Kentucky Guard to help with the response to the damage to western Kentucky.
Many agencies respond and assist the Kentucky State Police.
Beshear tweeted, “We are praying to our Western Kentucky family,”