Nunn Center and UK Ag extension team up to document deadly western Kentucky storms

By Alan Lytle

Published December 9, 2022 at 4:24 PM EST

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<strong>BEFORE</strong> (left): Homes and buildings before the tornado in Mayfield, Ky. on Jan. 28, 2017. <strong>AFTER</strong> (right): this image shows the damage to homes and buildings after the tornado in Mayfield, Ky. on Dec. 11, 2021. — **BEFORE** (left): Homes and buildings before the tornado in Mayfield, Ky. on Jan. 28, 2017. **AFTER** (right): this image shows the damage to homes and buildings after the tornado in Mayfield, Ky. on Dec. 11, 2021.

A significant milestone will be observed this weekend in western Kentucky. It was a year ago that more than a dozen tornadoes ripped through the region leaving a giant trail of death and destruction. In this edition of WUKY's award winning history series Saving Stories, Doug Boyd with UK's Nunn Center shares interviews from a project featuring emergency management personnel and first responders on the front lines during and after the December 2021 tornado outbreak in Western Kentucky. They talk about the opportunity to learn about the long-track tornadic system and how Western Kentuckians successfully overcame adversity from such devastation.

David Powell, a weather coordinator in Christian County, relays his response experience from the Western Kentucky 2021 tornado disaster.

https://kentuckyoralhistory.org/ark:/16417/xt7rbpkjs8bfq

Christine Wielgos, the Warning Coordinator Meteorologist for the Paducah branch of the National Weather Service, discusses her job, responsibilities and role in surveying the damage from the December 2021 tornado.

https://kentuckyoralhistory.org/ark:/16417/xt7h6g579v3tq

From the UK College of Agriculture, Food and Environment:

https://news.ca.uky.edu/article/year-after-tornado-uk-research-and-education-center-looks-back-pushes-forward