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2021 Western Kentucky tornado
EF5 tornado
Aerial view of the city of Mayfield, Kentucky, on December 12.
FormedDecember 10, 2021, 8:56 p.m. CST (UTC−06:00)
Duration2 hours, 50 minutes
DissipatedDecember 10, 2021, 11:45 p.m. CST (UTC–06:00)
Highest winds
  • 205 mph (330 km/h)[1]
Max. rating1EF5 tornado
Fatalities55+ deaths,[2] Unknown injuries
DamageUnknown
Areas affectedWestern Kentucky, United States

1Most severe tornado damage; see Enhanced Fujita scale

On December 10, 2021, an intense, long-tracked tornado moved across Western Kentucky, producing severe to catastrophic damage in numerous towns, including Mayfield, Benton, Dawson Springs, and Bremen.[1] Crossing through eleven counties of the Jackson Purchase and Western Coal Field regions during its lifespan, the tornado was exceptionally long-tracked, moving approximately 163 miles (262 km). It was the deadliest and longest-tracked tornado in an outbreak that produced numerous strong tornadoes in several states. At least 51 fatalities have been confirmed.[2] The second tornado in an exceedingly long-tracked tornado family, this tornado began just inside northern Obion County, Tennessee, a few miles after another long-tracked tornado–which traveled through northeast Arkansas, the Missouri Bootheel, and northwest Tennessee–dissipated in western Obion County.

Meteorological synopsis[edit]

This section is an excerpt from Tornado outbreak of December 10–11, 2021 § Meteorological synopsis.[edit]
Radar collage of a supercell that spawned a tornado family during the outbreak

On December 8, the Storm Prediction Center (SPC) outlined a slight risk of severe weather across a broad area of the Mississippi Valley. Despite the potential for a higher-end severe threat to materialize, forecasters expressed uncertainty regarding the extent of instability, degree of directional wind shear, and late timing of potential storms.[3] The following day, the SPC noted the increased potential for organized severe thunderstorms in the region extending from southeastern Arkansas northeast into southern Indiana, upgrading that area to an enhanced risk.[4]

As an intense upper-level trough progressed across the High Plains, with robust instability and moisture return across the Mississippi Valley, the SPC expanded the enhanced risk and introduced a moderate risk area from northeastern Arkansas into southern Illinois on the morning of December 10. Forecasters indicated that atmospheric conditions favored the development of nocturnal supercells capable of producing long-tracked, strong tornadoes.[5]

At 3:00 p.m. CST (21:00 UTC), the SPC issued a tornado watch across the highest risk area (encompassing central and eastern Arkansas, west Tennessee, northwestern Mississippi, southeastern Missouri, and southern portions of Illinois and Indiana), the first of eleven issued over subsequent hours over the middle Mississippi Valley.[6] Initial storms developed across central Arkansas around 2:00 p.m. CST (20:00 UTC), with even weaker activity developing over central Missouri a little over 1+1⁄2 hours later; additional clusters of thunderstorms developed over southwestern Missouri (forming between Bolivar and Carthage, eventually back-building into northeastern Oklahoma) and central Arkansas (forming southwest of Hot Springs) between 5:00 and 5:30 p.m. CST (23:00–23:30 UTC).[7] Though this activity lacked much vigor at its onset due to a strong capping inversion,[8] the convective cells began to show organization as they progressed eastward.

One such storm—which formed from the initial mid-afternoon activity near Arkadelphia, Arkansas—matured into a long-lived supercell as it progressed in an unstable, deeply moist, and highly sheared environment;[9] this cell ultimately persisted for more than 550 miles (890 km) over several hours from eastern Arkansas to northeastern Kentucky, producing two large and intense tornadoes along its track, among eleven tornadoes in total. The cell started showing signs of surface-based rotation southwest of Searcy, Arkansas, around 5:30 p.m. CST (23:30 UTC). At 5:51 p.m. CST, the National Weather Service office in North Little Rock issued the first tornado warning associated with the storm for portions of Jackson, Lawrence, White, and Woodruff counties.[10] One of the first tornadoes associated with the storm, an EF0, touched down in western Poinsett County (near Weiner) around 6:40 p.m. CST; about fifteen minutes later, storm spotters reported a large tornado near Greenfield, prompting a PDS tornado warning for portions of Poinsett, Craighead and Mississippi counties (including areas to the south of Jonesboro).[11]

Doppler radar analysis estimated that the supercell maintained a nearly continuous high-end rotational vorticity signature, averaging 94 mph (151 km/h; 82 kn) for approximately four hours and 20 minutes, a rarity among thunderstorms that produce mesocyclonic vorticity exceeding such speeds (averaging 1.5% of all supercells). The only velocities below said average recorded along the storm track were observed between 8:44 and 9:01 p.m. CST [02:44–3:01 UTC] as the storm crossed from Obion County, Tennessee into Hickman County, Kentucky. This time frame coincides with the start of the Western Kentucky tornado, implying the supercell underwent a mesocyclone re-strengthening phase during this period. During this intense tornado's lifetime, peak gate-to-gate velocities of 128 mph (206 km/h; 111 kn) were recorded at 9:58 p.m. CST (04:58 UTC) over northeastern Marshall County, Kentucky.[12][13][14]

Elsewhere, multiple lines of intense storms, some featuring embedded supercells, developed across the Mississippi Valley region through the overnight hours and generated other strong and long-lived tornadoes.[15][16] By the pre-dawn hours of December 11, a decrease in instability led to a gradual weakening of a line of thunderstorms stretching along the associated cold front from eastern Kentucky southward into central Alabama.[17][18]

The SPC issued a record-setting 43 mesoscale discussions (MCD) throughout the course of the day (12 UTC December 10 to 12 UTC December 11), all of which were associated with the broader storm system: 38 of the MCDs issued were convective discussions relating to the severe thunderstorm activity, and five were non-convective discussions relating to heavy snow associated with the system that concurrently fell throughout much of the Upper Midwest.[19] The National Weather Service (NWS) issued a total of 149 tornado warnings throughout the night across nine states: Arkansas, Tennessee, Missouri, Mississippi, Kentucky, Illinois, and Indiana.[20][14]

These included multiple 'particularly dangerous situation' (PDS) tornado warnings and tornado emergencies in Arkansas, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Missouri. Eight of the tornado warnings issued during the event by the NWS offices in Memphis, Tennessee, and Paducah, Kentucky, were tornado emergencies, the most ever issued during the month of December (breaking the previous record of three issued on December 23, 2015).[21][22]

Effects from the system responsible for the outbreak extended into Canada, where the Meteorological Service of Canada issued wind and heavy rainfall warnings for portions of Ontario. However, no tornadoes were expected nor reported north of the border.[23]

Tornado summary[edit]

Radar collage of the supercell that spawned this tornado

The tornado began in the community of Woodland Mills in Obion County, Tennessee along TN 5 at 8:56 p.m. CST (02:56 UTC), produced by the same supercell that had previously produced another long-track tornado that affected northeast Arkansas, the Missouri Bootheel, and northwest Tennessee, near Reelfoot Lake. After dissipation of that tornado in Obion County northeast of Samburg, the supercell produced this tornado near the state line. After moving northeast a half mile (0.8 km), it crossed the Tennessee–Kentucky line near the community of State Line in Fulton County. Soon after, the tornado directly impacted the community of Cayce, causing major damage.[1]

After moving to the northeast of Cayce, the tornado moved through rural areas, passing through Hickman County and into Graves County. Closely paralleling Interstate 69 (I-69) and U.S. 45, the tornado moved directly toward the city of Mayfield, where the National Weather Service issued a tornado emergency at 9:26 p.m. CST (03:26 UTC).[24] On the southwest side of Mayfield, numerous homes were destroyed along Cardinal Rd. near the Mayfield Bypass. After the tornado crossed the bypass, it struck Mayfield Consumer Products, a candle factory, where approximately 110 employees were working.[25][26] The building completely collapsed, trapping many employees and resulting in eight deaths and numerous injuries.[27][28][29][30] Allegedly, workers' jobs were threatened if they left the factory between the first and second tornado warnings for the area–a tornado warning had been issued earlier that evening at approximately 5:30 p.m. CST–and then again after the second tornado warning was issued after 9:00 p.m. CST.[31]

Debris was lofted over 30,000 feet (9 km) in the air after the tornado devastated Mayfield. (3D volume scan of the supercell)

Afterward, the tornado moved directly through the center of the city.[32][33] Most of the structures in downtown Mayfield were heavily damaged or destroyed, and a water tower was torn down and reduced to rubble. Serious damage occurred to several structures in the Mayfield Downtown Commercial District, including the city hall; the Graves County Courthouse sustained significant roof damage, had its clock tower torn off, and had some of its exterior upper-floor walls knocked down.[34] The fire station and police station in the city were also destroyed,[25] the emergency operations center lost the ability to transmit radio communications.[35]

After leaving Mayfield, the tornado continued northeast along I-69, crossing into Marshall County and striking the northwest side of Benton, producing major damage along the way. A second tornado emergency was issued as the tornado neared Benton.[36] It continued through the community of Cambridge Shores, where more significant damage occurred, and passed over Kentucky Lake into Lyon County. The tornado moved through the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area before crossing Lake Barkley. Soon after, it crossed Interstate 24 and moved into Caldwell County. The tornado passed near the county seat of Princeton, where a tornado emergency was issued,[37] before producing catastrophic damage in Dawson Springs, located along the Caldwell–Hopkins county line. A fourth tornado emergency was in effect for Dawson Springs and St. Charles as the storm moved through.[38] At least eleven people were killed in the Dawson Springs area.[33] The tornado crossed I-69 again as it moved through Hopkins County, before passing near Earlington (where a tornado emergency was in effect[39]) and once again crossing I-69 just east of there. A CSX freight line train was derailed in Earlington; 25 freight cars were derailed and one was thrown into a house.[40][41] Continuing into northern Muhlenberg County, a tornado emergency was issued for the community of Bremen, where eleven people were killed.[42]

Passing near the Muhlenberg–McLean county line, the tornado then crossed into Ohio County. It moved just north of both Centertown and Hartford, where it crossed U.S. 231 and Interstate 165, along with the Rough River twice.[1] Large steel power poles were pushed over along Johnson School Rd. just west of Hartford, earning an EF3 rating. The last area of EF3-strength damage occurred along Kentucky Route 69 northeast of Hartford, where several homes were destroyed. The tornado crossed the Rough River three more times in this area. North of Olaton, the tornado crossed the Rough River a sixth time and produced EF2-strength damage. It continued producing EF1–EF2 damage as it moved northeastward along the Ohio–Grayson county line, before crossing Kentucky Route 54 and entering Breckinridge County shortly after. It paralleled the Breckinridge–Grayson county line, before crossing the Rought River twice more, briefly entering Grayson County northwest of Falls of Rough at EF1 intensity. After crossing the river for a final time northeast of Falls of Rough, it re-entered Grayson County and crossed Kentucky Route 79, damaging a boat storage facility and scattering debris 200 yards (180 m) to the northeast, across a small airport. The tornado then moved into Rough River Dam State Resort Park before dissipating near Rough River Lake in Grayson County, approximately four miles (6.4 km) west of McDaniels at 11:45 p.m. CST (5:45 UTC).[43] The tornado was on the ground for nearly three hours, tracking approximately 163 miles (262 km) from State Line to Rough River Dam State Resort Park, among the longest continuous tornado tracks ever recorded.

Aftermath[edit]

Recovery efforts are currently underway, as disaster-aid and humanitarian groups, such as the American Red Cross, The Salvation Army, and World Vision are collecting donations and traveling to or shipping relief items to affected areas to provide aid.[44]

On December 11, President Joe Biden approved a federal emergency disaster declaration for the state of Kentucky.[44] Earlier that day, Governor Andy Beshear declared a state of emergency for parts of western Kentucky.[45] Beshear also announced the creation of a tornado relief fund and asked people to donate blood, as donated blood was running low throughout the pandemic.[44] On December 15, Mayor of Mayfield Kathy Stewart O’Nan said that recovery efforts would continue.[46]

Accusations that factory management prohibited workers from leaving the candle factory before the tornado struck were reported on December 13.[47][48]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d "Dec 10-11 2021 Tornado Event". weather.gov. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  2. ^ a b Hanna, Jason; Joseph, Elizabeth; Dominguez, Claudia; Cullinane, Susannah. "More than 80 feared dead after tornadoes hit central and southern US". CNN. CNN. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  3. ^ Aaron Gleason (December 8, 2021). "Dec 8, 2021 0830 UTC Day 3 Severe Thunderstorm Outlook". Storm Prediction Center. Archived from the original on December 8, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  4. ^ Aaron Gleason (December 9, 2021). "Dec 9, 2021 0700 UTC Day 2 Convective Outlook". Storm Prediction Center. Archived from the original on December 11, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  5. ^ Rich Thompson; Matt Mosier (December 10, 2021). "Dec 10, 2021 1630 UTC Day 1 Convective Outlook". Storm Prediction Center. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  6. ^ Rich Thompson (December 10, 2021). "Tornado Watch 552". Storm Prediction Center. Archived from the original on December 10, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  7. ^ Brian Squitieri; Jeremy Grams (December 10, 2021). "Mesoscale Discussion 1984". Storm Prediction Center. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  8. ^ Evan Bentley (December 10, 2021). "Mesoscale Discussion 1982". Storm Prediction Center. Archived from the original on December 10, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  9. ^ Brian Squitieri; Jeremy Grams (December 10, 2021). "Mesoscale Discussion 1986". Storm Prediction Center. Archived from the original on December 11, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  10. ^ "Tornado Warning (AR) #1". National Weather Service Little Rock, Arkansas. December 10, 2021. Archived from the original on September 1, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2021 – via Iowa Environmental Mesonet.
  11. ^ "Tornado Warning (AR) #2". National Weather Service Little Rock, Arkansas. December 10, 2021. Archived from the original on September 1, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2021 – via Iowa Environmental Mesonet.
  12. ^ Dylan Moriarty; Bonnie Berkowitz; Zach Levitt (December 11, 2021). "Deadly path: How tornadoes ripped through states". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on December 11, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  13. ^ Jason Samenow (December 11, 2021). "December tornadoes aren't rare, but Friday's outbreak was something totally different". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  14. ^ a b "The record-breaking tornadoes that swept the United States, by the numbers". The Washington Post LLC. December 13, 2021. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
  15. ^ Evan Bentley (December 10, 2021). "Mesoscale Discussion 1988". Storm Prediction Center. Archived from the original on December 11, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  16. ^ Brian Squitieri; Jeremy Grams (December 10, 2021). "Mesoscale Discussion 1998". Storm Prediction Center. Archived from the original on December 11, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  17. ^ Elizabeth Leitman (December 11, 2021). "Mesoscale Discussion 2018". Storm Prediction Center. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  18. ^ Elizabeth Leitman (December 11, 2021). "Mesoscale Discussion 2020". Storm Prediction Center. Archived from the original on December 11, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  19. ^ Jared Guyer and Matt Elliott (December 12, 2021). "An overview of the Mesoscale Discussions". twitter.com. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  20. ^ Jason Samenow; Ian Livingston; Jacob Feuerstein (December 11, 2021). "How Friday night's rare and deadly December tornado outbreak unfolded". The Washington Post LLC. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021 – via The Seattle Times.
  21. ^ "Many trapped, two dead as tornado hits nursing home in Arkansas -media". reuters.com. December 11, 2021. Archived from the original on December 11, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  22. ^ Kathryn Prociv; Nicole Acevedo (December 11, 2021). "'Quad-State Tornado' crossed four states in four hours, a rare December tornado". NBC News. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  23. ^ Kabi Moulitharan (December 11, 2021). "Environment Canada issues wind warning for most of southern Ontario". Global News. Corus Entertainment. Archived from the original on December 11, 2021. Retrieved December 16, 2021.
  24. ^ "Tornado Emergency For Mayfield". Iowa Environmental Mesonet. National Weather Service Forecast Office in Paducah, Kentucky. December 10, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  25. ^ a b "At least 70 feared dead in Kentucky as tornadoes rip through swaths of U.S." NBC News. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  26. ^ Heather Brinkmann (December 11, 2021). "Catastrophic tornado damage reported in Mayfield, Kentucky". Fox Weather. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  27. ^ "Thousands without heat, water after tornadoes kill dozens". AP News. December 13, 2021.
  28. ^ Bob D'Angelo; Theresa Seiger; Natalie Dreier (December 13, 2021). "Kentucky tornadoes: 8 confirmed dead at candle factory, 8 still missing". KOKI-TV. Archived from the original on December 11, 2021. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  29. ^ "At least 70 feared dead in Kentucky as tornadoes rip through swaths of U.S." NBC News. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  30. ^ Heather Brinkmann (December 11, 2021). "Catastrophic tornado damage reported in Mayfield, Kentucky". Fox Weather. Archived from the original on December 11, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  31. ^ "Factory workers threatened with firing if they left before tornado, employees say". NBC News. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  32. ^ "Deadly tornadoes, storms strike US; roof collapse at Amazon". AP NEWS. December 11, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  33. ^ a b Krauth, Olivia. "Kentucky tornado death toll: 50 people have been confirmed dead after storms by officials". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  34. ^ Catlin Bogard (December 11, 2021). "Severe tornado hits Mayfield, Kentucky, destroying buildings; Police say loss of life 'expected'". WTVF. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  35. ^ Karla Ward (December 11, 2021). "'Multiple fatalities' in Kentucky after tornado outbreak". Lexington Herald Ledger. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  36. ^ "Tornado Emergency For Benton". Iowa Environmental Mesonet. National Weather Service Forecast Office in Paducah, Kentucky. December 10, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  37. ^ "Tornado Emergency For Princeton, KY". Iowa Environmental Mesonet. National Weather Service Forecast Office in Paducah, Kentucky. December 10, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  38. ^ "Tornado Emergency For Dawson Springs and St. Charles". Iowa Environmental Mesonet. National Weather Service Forecast Office in Paducah, Kentucky. December 10, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  39. ^ "Tornado Emergency For Earlington and Afton, KY". Iowa Environmental Mesonet. National Weather Service Forecast Office in Paducah, Kentucky. December 10, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  40. ^ "Kentucky: Scores feared dead after tornadoes devastate US state". GB News. December 11, 2021. Archived from the original on December 11, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  41. ^ Mark Wilson (December 11, 2021). "Kentucky tornado derails a train in Hopkins County; one car lands on home". Evansville Courier & Press. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  42. ^ "Tornado Emergency For Bremen, KY". Iowa Environmental Mesonet. National Weather Service Forecast Office in Paducah, Kentucky. December 10, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  43. ^ "NWS Damage Survey for 12/11/2021 Tornado Event - Update 1". Iowa Environmental Mesonet. National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office in Louisville, Kentucky. December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  44. ^ a b c "Kentucky hardest hit as storms leave dozens dead in 5 states". AP NEWS. December 11, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  45. ^ Evan Hatter (December 11, 2021). "Governor Andy Beshear declares a State of Emergency after Western Kentucky tornadoes". WYMT-TV. Retrieved December 11, 2021.
  46. ^ Schnell, Mychael (December 12, 2021). "Mayfield, Ky., mayor: 'There's always hope. We hope for a miracle'". TheHill. Retrieved December 15, 2021.
  47. ^ "Factory workers threatened with firing if they left before tornado, employees say". NBC News. Retrieved December 14, 2021.
  48. ^ "Kentucky candle factory bosses threatened to fire those who fled tornado, say workers". the Guardian. December 14, 2021. Retrieved December 14, 2021.

External links[edit]


Western, Kentucky Category:2021 in Kentucky Tornado,2021-12-10, Western Kentucky Western Kentucky Tornado Category:Tornadoes in Kentucky

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