At least 27 people have been killed and dozens more injured as a series of violent storms and tornadoes tore through parts of the US, leaving behind a trail of destruction. According to news agency AP, Kentucky suffered the most, with 18 confirmed deaths and 10 others hospitalised in critical condition.Seventeen of the fatalities were reported in Laurel County, southeast Kentucky, and one in neighbouring Pulaski County. The Pulaski victim, 39-year fire department veteran Maj. Roger Leslie Leatherman, died while responding to emergency calls during the storm, ABC News reported.Governor Andy Beshear declared a state of emergency, calling the tornado one of the worst disasters during his tenure. “You can not only see the destruction, you can feel it,” Beshear said during a news conference Saturday. He warned that the death toll could still rise and urged national support for the affected region.In Kentucky’s London, residents described scenes of terror as homes were flattened and debris scattered for miles. Kayla Patterson was quoted by AP as describing how her family of seven hid in a bathtub as the storm roared “like a freight train.” Her house was spared, but many others around it were reduced to rubble.
Another resident, Chris Cromer, said he got the first of two tornado alerts on his phone around 11:30 pm (local time), about a half-hour before the tornado struck. He and his wife grabbed their dog, jumped in their car and scrambled to the crawlspace at a relative’s nearby home because the couple’s own crawlspace is small.“We could hear and feel the vibration of the tornado coming through,” said Cromer. A piece of his roof was ripped off, and windows were broken, but homes around his 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 National Weather Service has yet to officially confirm the tornado, though meteorologist Philomon Geertson said the damage was consistent with one. A preliminary count from federal forecasters cited by the New York Times indicated that at least 26 tornadoes touched down across multiple states, with Kentucky and Indiana seeing the worst of it.Missouri also reported devastation, particularly in St Louis, where a confirmed EF-3 tornado with 140 mph winds struck on Friday. Five people died in the city and 38 were injured, according to St Louis Mayor Cara Spencer, who called it “one of the worst storms” in the city’s history.A local resident, John Randle described that how 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,” said Randle, 19.As per ABC News, part of the Centennial Christian Church collapsed during the storm, killing long-time church member Patricia Penelton. Three others were trapped in the debris before being rescued, as recounted by Rev Derrick Perkins.Elsewhere in Missouri, two more deaths occurred in Scott County, while in Virginia, two people died after trees fell on their vehicles.The storms also brought large hail and widespread power outages. Over 462,000 customers lost electricity across states from Michigan to Tennessee.The weather crisis has exposed challenges within the National Weather Service. Several local offices had critical staffing shortages due to past federal cuts. In Kentucky, where tornado warnings were essential, the Louisville office was down 29% in staff and lacked a permanent chief as of March.As the cleanup continues, forecasters warn that more severe weather could strike parts of Texas, Oklahoma and the Plains over the coming days.
