2021 Tornado Outbreak

Donations flooded into the Mayfield-Graves County Fairgrounds in the immediate aftermath of December’s tornadoes as it quickly became a rallying point for the community, serving as a place where people could pick up vitally needed supplies in the wake of a disaster that left dozens dead and hundreds without housing. Now, nearly seven months later, it's ceasing operations as a donation center.

As a part of the ongoing effort to recover from December’s devastating tornado outbreak, Gov. Andy Beshear said Thursday state funding would go to two counties to assist in their recovery efforts.

More than six months after the December tornado outbreak, many western Kentucky residents are looking for mental health resources to help them navigate the trauma caused by the disaster.

Kentucky Legal Aid will receive more than $3 million from the Legal Service Corporation to support the group’s continued legal aid response to the December tornado outbreak.

The Graves County candle and home fragrance product manufacturer that lost a facility where several people tragically died during December’s tornado outbreak is set to expand its operations in another part of the county.

Gov. Andy Beshear announced Thursday that up to $3.25 million would go to help grain farmers in western Kentucky avoid crop and profit loss stemming from December’s tornado outbreak.

A framed picture of Barbara and Billy Patterson standing on the dirt where their North 6th Street home once was now sits on a sparkling new counter in their newly rebuilt home.

It’s been six months since a devastating and deadly storm ripped through western and southern Kentucky, producing 20 tornadoes, killing 81 people, injuring hundreds more and roiling an entire region. The event was heartbreaking, and took most people by surprise. Tornadoes aren’t unheard of in Kentucky, but few were expecting one of the longest tornado systems in the country’s history to materialize on the night of Dec. 10 — not exactly twister season.

A spire stood atop the Graves County Courthouse before an E-4 tornado swept through downtown Mayfield in December. While the spire no longer tops the courthouse, it can still be seen – less than a hundred yards away – in a mural just off the square proclaiming “Mayfield: More than a Memory.”

Pembroke is in much better shape than it was in the wake of December’s tornado outbreak, but there’s a long way to go for the Christian County community.