ST. LOUIS (AP) — Storm systems sweeping across parts of the Midwest and South have left at least 21 dead, many of them in Kentucky, where what appeared to be a devastating tornado crumbled buildings and flipped a car over on an interstate.
In Kentucky, some 14 people were killed by severe weather, and the death toll is likely to rise, according to Gov. Andy Beshear. Local authorities in Laurel County, in the state's southeast, said nine people were killed after a tornado touched down.
Laurel County resident Chris Cromer said he got the first of two tornado alerts on his phone around 11:30 p.m. or so, about a half-hour before the tornado struck. He and his wife grabbed their dog, jumped in their car, went to a relative's nearby home and got into a crawlspace.
“We could hear and feel the vibration of the tornado coming through,” said Cromer, 46.
His home is intact, though a piece of the roof got ripped off and windows were broken. A house two doors down is destroyed, along with others in the Sunshine Hills neighborhood, Cromer said.
“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, describing a landscape of destruction. "It makes you be thankful to be alive, really.”
Rescuers were “on the ground all night looking for possible survivors," and the search was continuing into the morning, Sheriff's Office spokesperson Deputy Gilbert Acciardo. An emergency shelter was set up at a local high school and donations of food and other necessities were arriving.
The National Weather Service hadn't yet confirmed that a tornado struck, but meteorologist Philomon Geertson said it was likely. It ripped across the largely rural area and extended to the London Corbin Airport shortly before midnight.
“Lives have been changed forever here tonight. This is a time we come together, and we pray for this community,” London Mayor Randall Weddle told WKYT-TV. “I have never personally witnessed what I‘ve witnessed here tonight.”
It’s 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. Hundreds of people were rescued, and most of the deaths were caused by vehicles getting stuck in high water.
A storm in late 2021 spawned tornadoes that killed 81 people and leveled portions of towns in western Kentucky. The following summer, historic floodwaters inundated parts of eastern Kentucky, leaving dozens more dead.
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 have found in recent years 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 also spawned tornadoes in Wisconsin, knocked out power to several hundred thousand customers in the Great Lakes region and brought a punishing heat wave to Texas.
St. Louis Mayor Cara Spencer confirmed five deaths in her city and said more than 5,000 homes were affected.
“This is truly, truly devastating,” Spencer said. An overnight curfew was imposed Friday in the neighborhoods with the most damage.
The total number of people injured was not immediately known, but hospitals in the area reported receiving dozens of patients, with some in serious condition.
National Weather Service radar indicated a likely tornado touched down between 2:30 p.m. and 2:50 p.m. in Clayton, Missouri, in the St. Louis area. The apparent tornado touched down in the area of Forest Park, home to the St. Louis Zoo and the site of the 1904 World’s Fair and Olympic Games the same year.
Three people needed aid after part of the Centennial Christian Church crumbled, City of St. Louis Fire Department 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, a 19-year-old University of Missouri-St. Louis student, said he and his girlfriend were at the St. Louis Art Museum during the storm and were hustled into the basement with about 150 other people.
"You could see the doors flying open, tree branches flying by and people running,” he said. “A lot of people were caught outside.”
The Saint Louis Zoo remained closed Saturday because of damage, but spokesperson Christy Childs said all animals were safe and that there were no reports of significant injuries to staffers, guests or animals.
A tornado struck in Scott County, about 130 miles (209 kilometers) south of St. Louis, killing two people, injuring several others and destroying multiple homes, Sheriff Derick Wheetley wrote on social media.
Forecasters say severe weather could batter southern Plains
The National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center said on its website Saturday that severe thunderstorms, large hail and “a couple of tornadoes” were expected across the southern Plains, with especially high risk in north Texas.
___
Contributing were Associated Press writers Haya Panjwani in Washington, D.C., Heather Hollingsworth in Kansas City, Missouri, Lisa Baumann in Bellingham, Washington, Julie Walker and Jennifer Peltz in New York and Sudhin Thanawala in Atlanta.
Michael Phillis, Corey Williams And John Hanna, The Associated Press
