Updated December 12, 2021 at 9:45 PM ET
Multiple tornadoes struck late Friday night and Saturday morning, tearing through several states including Kentucky, Illinois and Arkansas.
The storms have left hundreds of miles of devastation in their wake. In Edwardsville, Ill., a tornado ripped through an Amazon Distribution Hub, leaving at least six people dead. At least 70 people have died in Kentucky alone, the governor said, and the death toll there may rise to more than 100.
A mammoth search and recovery effort is now underway across the region, while those who survived begin the difficult task of surveying what's been lost and what it will take to rebuild.
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![<strong>Tues., Dec. 14: </strong>Debris lies outside a damaged home in Dawson Springs, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ed04b17/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3900x2600+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F14%2Fgettyimages-1237228471_slide-8637920a6b61f2035e931a6f3afeb1f86c56c0b4.jpg)
CHANDAN KHANNA / AFP via Getty Images
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AFP via Getty Images
![<strong>Mon., Dec. 13: </strong>Search and recovery teams work in the rubble at the site of a candle factory devastated after extreme weather hit the region, in Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/9a37984/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3900x2600+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F14%2Fgettyimages-1237218024_slide-5828d8e4759d556398c001525f19d459b7ed4479.jpg)
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AFP via Getty Images
![<strong>Mon., Dec. 13:</strong> People stand on a water tower that collapsed during Friday's tornado in Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/9e9b705/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2994x1996+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F14%2Fgettyimages-1358872126_slide-1f0475e3544f2242a20e08d9fa474879264f482c.jpg)
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Getty Images
![<strong>Mon., Dec. 13: </strong>In this aerial view, crews clear the rubble at the Mayfield Consumer Products candle factory after it was destroyed by a tornado three days prior, in Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/581773b/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x3999+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F13%2Fgettyimages-1358829299_slide-1a4ac0c8f382605a43ba7096c41eb4ca9e1d9363.jpg)
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Getty Images
![<strong>Mon., Dec. 13: </strong>Bowling Green, Kentucky residents, Jose Maldondo, Alexis Martinez, and Giovanni Morales set up to give out free food to tornado victims after extreme weather hit the area, in Bowling Green, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/371d2f5/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5505x3669+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F13%2Fgettyimages-1237217045_slide-9c124a5c81ab2384a7753060802aa124c63bf9ff.jpg)
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AFP via Getty Images
![<strong>Mon., Dec. 13: </strong>Volunteers help Martha Thomas, second left, salvage possessions from her destroyed home, in the aftermath of tornadoes that tore through the region, in Mayfield, Ky](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/8d782ef/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5128x3418+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F13%2Fap21347648533112_slide-61d1645228efc583e547b902448fbe659637a6cc.jpg)
Gerald Herbert / AP
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![<strong>Mon., Dec. 13: </strong>A home is badly damaged following a tornado three days prior, in Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/4d2c023/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6192x4128+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F13%2Fgettyimages-1358807670_slide-a61993f5c42a71a614fb85ffcfa8a381a0bcf015.jpg)
Brandon Bell / Getty Images
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Getty Images
![<strong>Sun., Dec. 12: </strong>Tamara Yekinni hugs a friend outside a shelter in Wingo, Ky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/1713abf/2147483647/strip/true/crop/8640x5759+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F13%2Fap21346766584327_slide-992be3f9cb8f6bd591d02429eb8349858ab7f87b.jpg)
Robert Bumsted / AP
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![<strong>Sun., Dec. 12:</strong> Nursing home assistant Loretta Duggin walks down a hallway in the Monette Manor nursing home on December in Monette, Arkansas.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/b61b52a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6192x4128+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F13%2Fgettyimages-1358662095_slide-510a3a2fa9cc985858b537ba13d095a9f8918dc1.jpg)
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![<strong>Sun., Dec. 12:</strong> Bogdan Gaicki surveys tornado damage after extreme weather hit in Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/94a13a5/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5548x3708+0+0/resize/880x588!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2Fgettyimages-1237193666_custom-fef2e784a03aaf83395cc01c2c8df9e791407539.jpg)
Brendan Smialowski / AFP via Getty Images
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AFP via Getty Images
![<strong>Sun., Dec. 12: </strong>In this aerial photo, destruction is seen along Reelfoot Lake in the aftermath of tornadoes that through the region, in Samburg, Tenn.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/1825fb4/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5589x3703+0+0/resize/880x583!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2Ftenn-ap21346731893508_custom-709b1354d0375d1c8a1e838c688df690d4ead373.jpg)
Gerald Herbert / AP
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AP
![<strong>Sun., Dec. 12: </strong>In this aerial photo, people stand on the porch of a destroyed home in the aftermath of tornadoes that tore through the region, in Dresden, Tenn.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/a837db7/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4318x2886+0+0/resize/880x588!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2Fap21346724759674_custom-70f67ba378de3af6e9df4d410966d3c1335b8560.jpg)
Gerald Herbert / AP
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AP
![<strong>Sun., Dec. 12: </strong>The front steps of a house are all that remains after a tornado in Dawson Springs, Ky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/264040a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3872x2559+0+0/resize/880x582!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2Ftenn-ap21346605982186_custom-3834e194ddebe545659e86772fd69841d4b0f0d4.jpg)
Michael Clubb / AP
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![<strong>Sun., Dec. 12: </strong>A family photo lays among the debris inside of a house after a tornado in Dawson Springs, Ky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/8c679ea/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3872x2579+0+0/resize/880x586!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2Fap21346605886079_custom-af0db72cce5bb1ad693bfae6feca93cdc14315db.jpg)
Michael Clubb / AP
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![<strong>Sun., Dec. 12: </strong>A dog sits in a cage next to a sleeping man inside a shelter in Wingo, Ky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/7d2fcc9/2147483647/strip/true/crop/8624x5739+0+0/resize/880x586!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2Fap21346775374895_custom-63dd9437ac9db69f191ad24759fbfb0aaa6f5de3.jpg)
Robert Bumsted / AP
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AP
![<strong>Sun., Dec. 12: </strong>Tornado damage is seen after extreme weather hit Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/ff815b8/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5538x3699+0+0/resize/880x588!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2Fgettyimages-1237188640_custom-45f548dd4e7bd5681620ebf1ce0876d163159603.jpg)
Brendan Smialowski / AFP/Getty Images
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AFP/Getty Images
![<strong>Sun., Dec. 12:</strong> Homes and business are reduced to rubble after a tornado ripped through Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/9146f8e/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2984x1998+0+0/resize/880x589!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2Fgettyimages-1358602471_custom-3b8ba29f94788fc0af7da26c9482d8e30f4100bf.jpg)
Scott Olson / Getty Images
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Getty Images
![<strong>Sun., Dec. 12: </strong>A cleanup worker walks past damaged trees and debris at the end of the day in Mayfield, Ky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/702ac03/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5979x3975+0+0/resize/880x585!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2Fap21347027778082_custom-c5c0b309cf258788e4e741b01abb4737c53a6cfe.jpg)
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AP
![People help retrieve items from a destroyed home Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, in Mayfield, Ky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/2b21406/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x3999+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F11%2Fap21345845006160_slide-59dc5d29dd535529a254b1329549cfa0188b30e1.jpg)
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![A home reduced to rubble on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, in Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/71ed0d9/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2984x1982+0+0/resize/880x585!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2F12112021_bm_mayfield_010_custom-ee8d2110ccdc6164acd31fc298864b2d75418de2.jpg)
Brian Munoz / St. Louis Public Radio
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St. Louis Public Radio
![Firefighters survey tornado damages in downtown Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/565ac96/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3000x1999+0+0/resize/880x586!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F11%2Fgettyimages-1237170677_slide-a38d9c785f1c23b54e9723eb45ad5b0faf1cfe0c.jpg)
Brett Carlsen / Getty Images
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Getty Images
![Chris Buchanan, right, lures dog Cheyenne from a tornado-damaged home with help from Niki Thompson, left, in Mayfield, Ky., on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/9b0da27/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x3999+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F11%2Fap21345733805223_slide-365bab1fd6f3c9e563804b2c970bd181382e8860.jpg)
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AP
![A damaged home which was lifted from its foundation and vehicles on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, in Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/7c7e82b/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2984x1998+0+0/resize/880x589!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2F12112021_bm_mayfield_032_custom-1c0f189a95bd255b059c23622b7df96ecbbc72ee.jpg)
Brian Munoz / St. Louis Public Radio for NPR
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St. Louis Public Radio
![Staff sergeant Nicholas Sullivan, of Martin, Tennessee, moves debris away from a pathway alongside other U.S. Army volunteers on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, in Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/576bdba/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2984x2149+0+0/resize/880x634!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2F12112021_bm_mayfield_027_custom-2c36fe6bf070c0107f8d060c871aa8f26e24a157.jpg)
Brian Munoz / St. Louis Public Radio for NPR
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St. Louis Public Radio
![Damaged USPS trucks on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, sit behind the post office, which was reduced to rubble, in Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/0110307/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2989x2012+0+0/resize/880x592!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2F12112021_bm_mayfield_021_custom-c05c637d706fd58451bfb6c1c19154a2afdb3f88.jpg)
Brian Munoz / St. Louis Public Radio for NPR
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St. Louis Public Radio
![Duke Traux, 33, of Elizabethtown, Illinois, cuts a downed tree with a chainsaw while Isaiah Keys, 18, of McCracken, Kentucky, picks up pieces on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, in Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/6fec9d8/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3000x2102+0+0/resize/880x617!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2F12112021_bm_mayfield_013_custom-fed80eb764e325e2158631e21d8c9ce250724c06.jpg)
Brian Munoz / St. Louis Public Radio for NPR
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St. Louis Public Radio
![An American flag is propped against debris on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, in Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/eeeaad9/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2994x2321+0+0/resize/880x682!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2F12112021_bm_mayfield_038_custom-1a6c9d516c501d092836dff5763e740195221ebc.jpg)
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St. Louis Public Radio
![General view of tornado damaged structures in Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/5b27685/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3000x1999+0+0/resize/880x586!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F11%2Fgettyimages-1237170332_slide-6dfe33ffb40bd6da1b98acdf20f1013c375492c0.jpg)
Brett Carlsen / Getty Images
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Getty Images
![Workers attempt to clear debris as part of a search and rescue operation on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, at an Amazon Distribution Hub in Edwardsville, Illinois.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/344c578/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3000x2185+0+0/resize/880x641!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F11%2F12112021_bm_amazon-storms_007_custom-cc19bedebd69644c5346ba225a653f5c5d54b91e.jpg)
Brian Munoz / St. Louis Public Radio
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Brian Munoz/St. Louis Public Radio
![Workers attempt to clear debris as part of a search and rescue operation on Saturday at an Amazon Distribution Hub in Edwardsville, Illinois](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/1b6c895/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3000x2000+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F11%2F12112021_bm_amazon-storms_0061_slide-4d875e3c4fe407bdb1cbab92ccb4b61591c11b3f.jpg)
Brian Munoz / St. Louis Public Radio
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Brian Munoz/St. Louis Public Radio
![Workers attempt to clear debris as part of a search and rescue operation at an Amazon Distribution Hub in Edwardsville, Illinois.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/d4ec0d4/2147483647/strip/true/crop/2994x1995+0+0/resize/880x586!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F11%2F12112021_bm_amazon-storms_012_slide-b70d3219a2af63587726f17daf8d595f98b4f839.jpg)
Brian Munoz / St. Louis Public Radio
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Brian Munoz/St. Louis Public Radio
![Damage from a tornado is seen in downtown Mayfield, Ky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/48d043e/2147483647/strip/true/crop/6000x3999+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F11%2Fap21345647885516_slide-6ab8b3b94e2f5fcdc2a3f2726aa3fe1d0c12fe4f.jpg)
Mark Humphrey / AP
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AP
![<strong>Sat., Dec. 11: </strong>In this aerial photo, a collapsed factory is seen with workers searching for survivors in Mayfield, Ky., after tornadoes came through the area the previous night.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/3d3ec31/2147483647/strip/true/crop/5246x3507+0+0/resize/880x588!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F12%2Fap21346032894123_custom-230eda4d90eb360ff4add454416b215c4dfd884f.jpg)
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AP
![Interior view of tornado damage to Emmanuel Baptist Church in Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/8c17afd/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3000x1999+0+0/resize/880x586!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F11%2Fgettyimages-12371591331_slide-eed0cf3b634ee4981098392524f194e8b91ce19d.jpg)
Brett Carlsen / Getty Images
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Getty Images
![A Kentucky National Guard helicopter surveys the tornado damage near Mayfield Consumer Products on December 11, 2021 in Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/b22a953/2147483647/strip/true/crop/7886x5257+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F11%2Fgettyimages-1237166066_slide-8b74b81505d20ef937c6aa509525a0400a8655d7.jpg)
Brett Carlsen / Getty Images
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Getty Images
![A classic Chevrolet sits amidst a tornado destroyed building on December 11, 2021 in Mayfield, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/7e0088c/2147483647/strip/true/crop/4878x3252+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F11%2Fgettyimages-1237166152_slide-c6ddfcd6499a0b344ee2f9bddc6ca5a437c3cff6.jpg)
Brett Carlsen / Getty Images
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Getty Images
![People work at the scene of a train derailment after a devastating outbreak of tornadoes in Earlington, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/c8f217a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3000x2000+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F11%2F2021-12-11t161249z_1_lynxmpehba06i_rtroptp_4_usa-weather-tornadoes_slide-0ad5bba8e49f62854285c124db8646261f3b87d5.jpg)
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REUTERS
![Local residents walk past the scene of a train derailment after a devastating outbreak of tornadoes ripped through several U.S. states in Earlington, Kentucky.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/e2ba64c/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3000x2000+0+0/resize/880x587!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fassets%2Fimg%2F2021%2F12%2F11%2F2021-12-11t161249z_1_lynxmpehba06k_rtroptp_4_usa-weather-tornadoes_slide-75e9f1254430731029403963ee615d32c3d16e55.jpg)
Cheney Orr / Reuters
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