MAYFAIR, KY. — At least 64 people have been confirmed dead after a devastating tornado outbreak that impacted at least nine states.
Channel 2′s Tony Thomas was in the hardest-hit area, Mayfield, Kentucky, where many people were returning home Monday to find pretty much nothing left.
Thomas talked to Gerardo Guardian, who was working with his family to clear the rubble of what used to be his family business, a Hispanic grocery store and restaurant. Guardian said he has no idea what his family is going to do to move forward.
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“Right now we haven’t really discussed it,” Guardian said. “We are just trying to stay together through all this.”
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The scene has repeated itself all across the small town of around 10,000 people. The governor said there are still 105 residents missing. The victims who have been confirmed dead range from 5 months to 86 years old.
The local candy factory, Mayfield Consumer Products LLC, was leveled by the storm. Eight people have been confirmed dead with eight more still missing under the rubble. The number of dead there is thankfully lower than was first expected.
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The company’s CEO, Troy Popes, said they are trying to help employees affected by the storm.
“We are going to be here to handle it,” Popes said. “We are going to do everything we can for our employees. We are going to do everything we can for this community.”
As the shock of the disaster wears off, basic human needs are becoming an issue. Thousands of homes have been destroyed and services have been decimated.
“Everyone is out of heat, food and everything,” resident Marie Bruce said. “It’s terrible. You worry your town will never recover. I don’t think it ever really will. I really don’t.”
Kentucky governor Andy Beshear said that of the dead, 18 bodies have still not been identified. Search and rescue teams continue to fan out across the affected counties, still hoping to find survivors.