US: Around 16 dead as tornadoes rip through Missouri and Kentucky; widespread power outages reported
By Gurinderjit Neeta Machhike
USA, May 17, 2025: At least 16 people have been killed in a devastating wave of storms and suspected tornadoes that tore through parts of Missouri and southeastern Kentucky on Friday night.
According to local officials, 9 of the deaths were reported in Laurel County, Kentucky, making it one of the hardest-hit areas.
The violent weather, triggered by a powerful storm system, unleashed large tornadoes and damaging winds across Missouri, Kentucky, Illinois, and Indiana, causing severe destruction to homes, infrastructure, and power lines. Authorities say the same storm system had already wreaked havoc on Thursday, and its impact continued into the early hours of Saturday.
As of Saturday morning, more than 700,000 homes and businesses across over a dozen states were without electricity, with Missouri and Kentucky bearing the brunt of the outages and damage.
Emergency services and disaster response teams have been deployed for rescue and recovery efforts, while meteorologists warn of continued severe weather in the region through the weekend.