On December 10th, 2021, one of the longest tornado systems ever recorded in the U.S. began tearing its way through regions in western and southern Kentucky – killing 81 people and leaving a trail of destruction. Surveying the damage in the following days left many in disbelief.
"Nothing I'd ever seen had prepared me for what I saw at first light that day."Gov. Andy Beshear
Gov. Andy Beshear will be among those revisiting communities struck by the tornadoes to see the progress that’s been made a year later. Kathy O’Nan, the mayor of Mayfield, one of the hardest hit towns, remembered the hours immediately following the disaster.
"Just a little over a year ago, we sat in our emergency operation center with the governor and he looked us straight in the eyes and said you've got all the help you need from the state and... we're not going to let you go bankrupt," she said during a Thursday Team Kentucky briefing.
Fast-forwarding to a year later, Bowling Green, director of Neighborhood & Community Services Rick Childers told Fox19 the outlook in his area today is encouraging.
"It's amazing to see the amount of construction that's taken place, the amount of recovery that's taken place," Childers said. "It's really remarkable."
Yet, the tornadoes left many wounds that won’t heal – from businesses that didn’t recover to those lost to the disaster.
Mayfield will be holding events and memorials to mark the one-year anniversary.
