(Tomer Burg/Univ. [68], In June 2022, the Mayfield City Council put several blocks in the city's heavily impacted downtown under a building permit freeze as they strategized how to rebuild in the area, before rezoning the area in December 2022 for "less restrictive" commercial and residential mixed-use development. Its 165.7 mile long path length was on the longest for a tornado in U.S. history. A tale of two loads of Kentucky tornado relief collected, distributed, with owner-op Daniel Koors (Podcast Episode 2021) Movies, TV, Celebs, and more. About. It crossed US 231, I-165, and KY 69 near Hartford, along with the Rough River twice. The Paducah officealso saidan aerial assessment of damage appearedto show an "historic long track tornado" that was at least three-quarters of a mile wide in Kentucky as it went from southwest of Cayce in Fulton County to at least Beaver Dam in Ohio County. It's completely possible that the December 10th tornado in WKY contained either a satellite tornado, or underwent a vortex merger in Dawson Springs. widespread and severe damage in Stewart County was between Indian Branch and Morgan Branch, to the south of Bumpus Mills. Some outbuildings were also damaged or destroyed in this area. Injuries: 5 [1] The second significant tornado in an exceedingly long-tracked tornado family, this tornado began just inside northern Obion County, Tennessee, a few miles after another long-tracked EF4 tornado which traveled through northeast Arkansas, the Missouri Bootheel, and northwest Tennessee dissipated in western Obion County. Around 10:55 p.m. the tornado left Hopkins County and entered Muhlenberg County, reaching the small community of Bremen at 11:00 p.m. Several homes experienced catastrophic EF-4 damage here. 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. . Large trees sustained severe denuding and debarking, grass was scoured from the ground, and vehicles were thrown through the air and severely mangled. [16][17] By the pre-dawn hours of December11, a decrease in instability led to a gradual weakening of a line of thunderstorms stretching along the associated cold front from eastern Kentucky southward into central Alabama. Officials in Kentucky reported 77 fatalities statewide on Friday with just one person still missing after several tornadoes devastated the state a week ago. Amazon truck cabs are seen outside a damaged Amazon Distribution Center after it was hit by a tornado, Dec. 11, 2021, in Edwardsville, Ill. Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images The deadliest tornado in Kentucky history was March 27, 1890, when 76 people died, according to the National Weather Service. Structures destroyed: 21, Hickman County, KY: Oak Grove Road. However, no tornadoes were expected nor reported north of the border.[24]. NWS Paducah plansto document the recovery of cities and towns that were devastatedduring this tornado outbreak. family brick home near Bear Creek where it took off the roof and top story. Past Barnsley, the tornado passed through an unpopulated swampy area, where more large trees were snapped or uprooted, and damage was rated EF2. [54] Among the fatalities was District Judge Brian Crick, who represented Muhlenberg and McLean counties, as confirmed in a statement from the Supreme Court of Kentucky on December 11. five tornadoes that ripped into Kentucky overnight Saturday, Seventy-sixpeople have been confirmed dead, Inside the final frantic hours of the Mayfield candle factory, How to donate to Kentucky tornado relief funds, blood drives, Here's how the National Weather Service decides a tornado's rating, EF3, or higherEarly estimates of the strength and size of the main Kentucky tornado, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. WFO Paducah Navigator A powerful supercell thunderstorm traveled more than 200 miles Friday night, from Arkansas to Kentucky, and likely spawned several large, strong tornadoes across four states. Those numbers "could rise significantly," he said Saturday afternoon. All rights reserved. (NWS Storm Survey), Poultry farm on Clark Road in Fulton County. [69] In December 2022, a temporary memorial was placed in the Mayfield court square. Chelsea Emmons holds onto a cat that belongs to her mother, Kim Goforth, Dec. 11, 2021, in Bremen, Ky., while searching Goforth's following a tornado that struck overnight. The largest and most devastating of the five tornadoes that ripped into Kentucky overnight Saturday tore through hundreds of miles and multiple states. (NWS Storm Survey), University of Kentucky Research and Education Center south of Princeton. Emergency crews respond at a damaged Amazon.com, Inc warehouse after a tornado passed through Edwardsville, Ill., Dec. 10, 2021 in this still image taken from drone video obtained on Dec. 11, 2021. (NWS Storm Survey), Graves County Courthouse in downtown Mayfield. 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. [35][26][46] A photograph was lofted from a destroyed house in Dawson Springs and transported almost 130 miles (210km) by the intense tornadic updrafts, eventually being found in New Albany, Indiana. Tornado devastation of Mayfield's central business district. Structures destroyed: 12, Graves County, KY: A nearby church had minor structural damage. Structures destroyed or uninhabitable:356, Lyon County, KY: Timothy Marshall, a meteorologist, and structural and forensic engineer, Christine L. Wielgos, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service of Paducah, & Brian E. Smith, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service of Omaha, later published a damage survey from Dawson Springs which rated this apartment complex as mid-EF3 intensity with winds estimated at 155 miles per hour (249km/h). [22][23], Effects from the system responsible for the outbreak extended into Canada, where the Meteorological Service of Canada issued wind and heavy rainfall warnings for portions of Ontario. Structures destroyed: 300 (estimate), Hopkins County, KY AFTER (right): Overview of damage in downtown Mayfield, Ky. on Dec. 11, 2021. . 66 damaged and 37 destroyed, Marshall County, KY: The tornado then crossed into Todd County where mostly tree damage and damage to farm/outbuildings were observed. Click here for an interactive StoryMap about the tornado outbreak that occurred across the region. Kentucky tornadoes: governor says death toll expected to grow as crews sift through ruins. The concrete foundation was scoured away. The tornado produced EF-4 damage in Cayce, including the total destruction of buildings and complete collapse of the walls in family homes. Regional radar loop across the Lower Ohio and Mississippi River valleys from 6 PM Dec. 10 to 8 AM Dec. 11. 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. [3], On December 8, the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) delineated a slight risk of severe weather along much of the Mississippi Valley. J. At least six people died in the collapse, Illinois Gov. Structures damaged: 341 Please Contact Us. [1] The tornado again reached EF4 intensity as it tore directly through the small community of Cambridge Shores, located along the western shore of Kentucky Lake. Soon after, the tornado became violent and directly impacted the small community of Cayce at EF4 intensity, where multiple homes and small businesses were damaged or destroyed, with some that were leveled or swept clean from their foundations. Multiple tornadoes touched down in several midwestern states late Friday evening. The EF-3 tornado had peak winds of at least 155 mph, according to the National Weather Service. [55] Some weakening occurred, but significant damage continued after the tornado exited Bremen and crossed US 431, where some homes and mobile homes were damaged or destroyed, and hundreds of large trees were snapped and denuded. More:Here's how the National Weather Service decides a tornado's rating, For the category of the biggest tornado, the National Weather Service office in PaducahtweetedSaturday it would likely "take some time to make a determination on intensity / rating.". [57] It was rated high-end EF4, with an estimated peak wind speed of 190mph (310km/h). CST. 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. Time lapse of home reconstruction in Mayfield. On December 12, 2021, the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) on NASA's Aqua satellite acquired this natural-color image of the tornado track across western Kentucky near Mayfield. :EF3, or higherEarly estimates of the strength and size of the main Kentucky tornado. Along the outskirts of the town were small barns or farm outbuildings with collapsed roofs. [29][30] The large metal-framed warehouse building completely collapsed, trapping many employees and resulting in eight deaths and numerous injuries. EF2 damage was noted as it tracked into Graves County, closely paralleling I-69 and US 45 directly toward the city of Mayfield. Concrete floor slabs were torn from the foundation of one home and shattered, while the paved driveway of another residence was cracked and scoured. Observed Precipitation, RADAR To be exact, 72 of those counties are without obstetric services. 5 people were injured in west Tennessee. Aviation Weather However, the National Weather Service did not confirm this.[48][49]. Cars were thrown hundreds of yards and mangled. The storm originated in Arkansas, according to Kentucky Division of Emergency Management director Michael Dossett, and touched down in Missouri and Tennessee before making its way into the Bluegrass State, where it ripped through the western half of the state before finally weakening in central Kentucky. As many as 70 people are believed to have been killed in western Kentucky, and the death toll could exceed 100, according to Gov. "I think the largest loss of life in this tornado event is and will be there.". [63][64] Beshear also announced the creation of a tornado relief fund and asked people to donate blood, as donated blood was running low throughout the pandemic. 2021 Western Kentucky tornado A long-tracked wedge spawned by the Quad-State supercell, that damaged, destroyed, or obliterated thousands of structures along a path of 165.6 miles (266.5 km) while moving at 60 miles per hour (97 km/h). Click to enlarge. Two other buildings were also heavily damaged along with multiple silos destroyed.