Beautiful Virgin Islands

Tuesday, Oct 21, 2025

More Than 70 Dead As Tornadoes Flatten Entire Blocks In 5 US States

More Than 70 Dead As Tornadoes Flatten Entire Blocks In 5 US States

The western Kentucky town of Mayfield was "ground zero" of the storm -- a scene of "massive devastation," one official said.

Dozens of devastating tornadoes ripped through five US states overnight, leaving more than 70 people dead Saturday in Kentucky -- many of them workers at a candle factory -- and inflicting deadly damage at a sprawling Amazon warehouse in Illinois.

The western Kentucky town of Mayfield was reduced to "matchsticks," its mayor said.

The small town of 10,000 people appeared post-apocalyptic in drone footage posted by storm-chaser Brandon Clement: city blocks leveled, with almost nothing salvageable; historic homes and buildings beaten down to their slabs; tree trunks stripped of their branches; cars overturned in fields.

"It is indescribable -- the level of devastation is unlike anything I have ever seen," Kentucky governor Andy Beshear said after rushing to Mayfield. "This will be, I believe, the deadliest tornado system to ever run through Kentucky."


Beshear said it was clear that the death toll in his state was already "north of 70" and could end up "exceeding 100 before the day is done."

Referring to the candle factory, where a roof collapsed, he said: "We're going to lose a lot of lives in that facility. It's a very dire situation."

CNN played a heart-rending tape of an urgent plea posted on Facebook by one of the factory's employees.

"We are trapped, please, y'all, get us some help," a woman says, her voice quavering as a co-worker can be heard moaning in the background. "We are at the candle factory in Mayfield. ... Please, y'all. Pray for us."

The woman, Kyanna Parsons-Perez, was rescued after being pinned under a water fountain.

But Mayfield Mayor Kathy O'Nan told CNN in midafternoon that there had been no successful rescues from the factory since 3:00 am, adding to fears the death toll will rise.

"When I walked out of City Hall this morning, it -- it looked like matchsticks," she said of Mayfield.

"Our downtown churches have been destroyed, our courthouse... is destroyed, our water system is not functioning at this time, there is no power."

"It looks like a bomb has exploded in our community," 31-year-old Mayfield resident Alex Goodman told AFP. "The sheer force of the wind and the rain was incredible."

The tornado that smashed through Mayfield had rumbled along the ground for over 200 miles in Kentucky and for 227 miles overall, Beshear said.

Previously, the longest a US tornado has ever tracked along the ground was a 219-mile storm in Missouri in 1925. Powerful and devastating -- as such long-track storms tend to be -- it claimed 695 lives.

In one measure of this storm's awesome power, when winds derailed a 27-car train near Earlington, Kentucky, one car was blown 75 yards up a hill, and another landed on a house, though no one was hurt.

'Unimaginable,' says Biden


Reports put the total number of tornadoes across the region at around 30.

At least eight people were killed in other storm-hit states, including two at the Amazon facility in Illinois.

In Arkansas, at least one person died when a tornado "pretty much destroyed" a nursing home in Monette, a county official said. Another person died elsewhere in the state.

Four people died in Tennessee, while one died in Missouri.

President Joe Biden spoke to the governors of all five states and said the massive storm system had inflicted an "unimaginable tragedy". He vowed to provide all needed federal aid.

The American Red Cross said it was working to provide relief across all five states.

At least four Kentucky counties were left devastated, with officials describing Mayfield as "ground zero."

The governor declared a state of emergency and said scores of search and rescue officials had been deployed along with the national guard.

More than half a million homes in several states were left without power, according to PowerOutage.com.

Amazon workers trapped


When another tornado hit an Amazon warehouse in the southern Illinois city of Edwardsville, reducing much of it to rubble, around 100 workers were trapped inside.

Hundreds of workers scrambled to rescue the trapped or injured employees, who were on the night shift processing orders ahead of Christmas. Two died, local media reported.

Amazon spokesperson Richard Rocha said its workers' safety was the company's "top priority," adding, "We're assessing the situation and will share additional information when it's available."

Scientists have warned that climate change is making storms more powerful and increasing their frequency.

Tornado outbreaks in this region are rare in December, however.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
ScamBodia: The Chinese Fraud Empire Shielded by Cambodia’s Ruling Elite
French PM Suspends Macron’s Pension Reform Until After 2027 in Bid to Stabilize Government
Orange, Bouygues and Free Make €17 Billion Bid for Drahi’s Altice France Telecom Assets
Dutch Government Seizes Chipmaker After U.S. Presses for Removal of Chinese CEO
Bessent Accuses China of Dragging Down Global Economy Amid New Trade Curbs
U.S. Revokes Visas of Foreign Nationals Who ‘Celebrated’ Charlie Kirk’s Assassination
AI and Cybersecurity at Forefront as GITEX Global 2025 Kicks Off in Dubai
×