- Kentucky governor says this is the "most devastating tornado event in our state's history."
- Amazon confirms confirms deaths at Illinois facility.
- More than 500,000 power outages reported.
Multiple people are dead and search and rescue efforts ongoing after storms and tornadoes, including one that ripped through four states, left a catastrophic path of destruction in parts of the South and Midwest overnight.
A candle factory was destroyed in Kentucky, an Amazon facility was ripped apart in Illinois and a nursing home was hit in Arkansas. Officials have confirmed deaths and injuries at all of those locations.
Deaths were also reported in Tennessee and Missouri.
The quad-state tornado tracked through portions of Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee and Kentucky and may have been on the ground for more than 100 miles.
Here are the latest updates:
Bodies Pulled From Candle Factory Rubble
Bodies have been pulled from the ruins of a crushed candle factory in Mayfield, Kentucky, but the exact number isn't yet known, Kentucky State Police Trooper Sarah Burgess said, according to The Associated Press.
Search and rescue teams were still combing through the rubble.
“We just can’t confirm a number right now because we are still out there working, and we have so many agencies involved in helping us,” Burgess said.
She said heavy equipment was being used to move rubble and coroners were called to the scene.
Major Damage in Bowling Green, Kentucky
Officials said at least one person there was killed.
Amazon Confirms Deaths At Illinois Facility
“We’re deeply saddened by the news that members of our Amazon family passed away as a result of the storm in Edwardsville, Ill.,” Kelly Nantel, an Amazon spokeswoman, said in a statement on Saturday, according to The New York Times. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their loved ones and everyone impacted by the tornado.”
Police in Edwardsville earlier said an unspecified number of people died when an Amazon building losts its roof and sustained other serious damage Friday night. A wall the size of a football field collapsed at the property, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported.
Edwardsville is about 25 miles east of St. Louis and is home to at least two Amazon warehouses
'Toughest Day of My Life'
Local officials at a press conference with Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear became emotional talking about the damage in and around Mayfield.
"This is probably the toughest day of my life," Graves County Executive Judge Jesse Perry said, his voice breaking. "The only thing I can say to you all, at this time, what we need from everyone ... We need your prayers, we need your help."
Kentucky Governor: More than 100 Feared Dead
"This has been the most devastating tornado event in our state’s history … The level of devastation is unlike anything I have ever seen," Gov. Andy Beshear said in a news conference in Mayfield at around 11 a.m.
Earlier, the governor estimated that between 50 and 100 were killed, including at a candle factory in Mayfield where more than 100 were working when the storm hit late Friday night.
"I’m now certain that number is north of 70. It may in fact end up exceeding 100 before the day is done," Beshear said. "The damage is even worse now that we have first light."
The governor said he expected a federal emergency declaration within the hour.
Drone Footage Shows Nursing Home Devastation
Parts of the roof and walls were torn off when a tornado struck the Monette Manor nursing home in Monette, Arkansas, about 20 miles east of Jonesboro.
At least one person was killed there and five injured, and an emergency management operator for the Craighead County, where the nursing home is located, told weather.com Friday night that there was extensive damage in the area.
At least one other death was confirmed, at a Dollar General store in the nearby town of Leachville.
Half Million Power Outages Nationwide
Some 500,000 homes and business are without power in a band of eight states from Michigan to Arkansas as of about 10:45 a.m., according to poweroutage.us. The highest numbers are in Tennessee (143,000), one of the states hit by last night's severe weather, and Michigan (118,000), which has been pummeled by high winds.
Where is Severe Weather Headed Next?
The storms and tornadoes were part of a winter storm named Atticus by The Weather Channel.
The storm is continuing to trek east today but with a much more isolated tornado and damaging wind threat, weather.com digital meteorologist Jonathan Belles said.
The threat will stretch from the Deep South to the mid-Atlantic in the morning and afternoon hours.
Read the full forecast here.
Search and Rescue Efforts Ongoing at Kentucky Candle Factory
The Weather Channel Meteorologist Chris Bruin said it was hard to find the words to describe the scene in Mayfield.
“There were tons of vehicles just thrown like toys," Bruin said of the drive into town, adding that tractor dealerships were destroyed and semis blown over along the highway.
The candle factory, where rescuers are still searching through debris, is about a mile outside of downtown, and damage stretches across the area.
Mayfield, a town of about 10,000 people, is located in western Kentucky.
Roofs Ripped Off, Buildings Gone
Devastating photos are just beginning to show the damage across several states.
A woman walks away from a row of ambulances on the property of Mayfield Consumer Products Candle Factory after it was destroyed by a tornado, in Mayfield, Kentucky, in this image taken Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021. (JOHN AMIS/AFP via Getty Images)
State of Emergency Declared in Kentucky
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear issued a state of emergency and requested a federal emergency declaration.
Much of Mayfield, Kentucky, Flattened
Daytime images are just starting to emerge as of about 8 a.m. EST, painting a devastating picture of damage in Mayfield, where a candle factory was destroyed, the town's courthouse was heavily damaged and homes and other buildings were ripped apart.
Kentucky Governor Says 50 to 100 People Likely Dead
“It’s been one of the toughest nights in Kentucky history and some areas have been hit in ways that are hard to put into words," Gov. Andy Beshear said in a news conference.
More than 100 people were working in a factory in Mayfield that was ripped apart.
“There were about 110 people in it at the time that the tornado hit it,” Beshear said. “We believe we’ll lose at least dozens of those individuals. It’s very hard, really tough, and we’re praying for each and every one of those families.”
Hundreds of Thousands Without Electricity
More than 300,000 power outages are being reported across eight states as of 7:13 a.m. EST, according to poweroutage.us. The biggest number - 137,000 - is in Tennessee, followed by 71,000 in Kentucky, 34,000 in Illinois, 31,000 in Indiana and 25,000 in Arkansas.
Deaths Confirmed at Amazon Warehouse
An Amazon distribution center is heavily damaged after a severe storm moved through the area Friday, Dec. 10, 2021, in Edwardsville, Illinois.
(AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)Police in Edwardsville, Illinois, say there are fatalities at the Amazon warehouse that was ripped apart during the storms. There is no word yet on the exact number.
Storm Debris Blocks Roadway at Nashville Airport
The road to departures at Nashville International Airport was blocked by debris and closed early Saturday morning, according to a tweet from the airport.
Winter Storms Can Have a Severe Side
The storm, named Atticus by The Weather Channel, is bringing severe weather, high winds, snow and rain as it treks east.
It delivered the first measurable snow of the season Thursday and Friday to areas including Salt Lake City and Denver. Snow was estimated up to 3 feet in some spots in the mountains of southern Wyoming and Colorado.
In Minnesota, the state patrol responded to more than 136 crashes as of 4 p.m. Friday and more than 200 flights were canceled at Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport. More than 20 inches of snow fell in some areas, including the Twin Cities.
On the storm's warmer side, parts of the Deep South, including the Tennessee and Ohio valleys, could pick up over an inch of rain through Saturday.
It's not unusual for severe weather to accompany a winter storm.
"Winter storms often produce strong to severe thunderstorms by pulling moist, warm and buoyant air northward from the Gulf of Mexico," weather.com meteorologist Jonathan Belles said. "Those thunderstorms feed on the jet stream that fuels the storm system, growing taller and more tilted, and the storms are eventually pushed to spin by a change in winds from the ground to the jet stream level."
Click here to see what happened as the storms and tornadoes were hitting late Friday night and into early Saturday morning.
The Weather Company’s primary journalistic mission is to report on breaking weather news, the environment and the importance of science to our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
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