Kentucky tornado death toll jumps to 74 including six children with 109 people still missing

Governor Andy Beshear warns there will ‘undoubtedly’ be more fatalities

The death toll from devastating tornadoes in Kentucky has risen to 74 - including at least six children - with more than 109 people still missing.

Governor Andy Beshear provided an update on search efforts from Friday night’s storms at an emotional press conference on Monday afternoon.

He announced 10 new deaths from the previous toll reported hours earlier, at which point he said: “Undoubtedly there will be more.”

The dead ranged in age from five months old to 86 years old, with at least six minor victims and 18 who have yet to be identified, Gov Beshear said. Deaths were reported in eight counties, while 18 sustained damage from tornadoes.

The governor has previously said he believes the death toll statewide will top 100. On Monday he predicted it could take weeks to develop a full account of the devastation.

Fighting back tears, Gov Beshear told viewers: “I’m really sorry. You’re not supposed to lose people like this, and to not know and not have the information has got to make it that much harder.”

Thirty-seven tornadoes were reported in six states from Friday night into Saturday morning, with at least 14 people confirmed dead across Illinois, Tennessee, Arkansas and Missouri.

Kentucky bore the brunt of the damage with at least four twisters, including one with an extraordinarily long path of about 200 miles (322 kilometres), authorities said. The outbreak was all the more remarkable because it came at a time of year when cold weather normally limits tornadoes.

The main twister is believed to have originated in northeast Arkansas before moving across southeast Missouri, northwest Tennessee and western Kentucky. If confirmed, the “supercell” could become the longest single-track twister to inflict damage across four states in US history - breaking a 1925 record-holder that hit three states.

Warren County coroner Kevin Kirby said the death toll from the storms in and around Bowling Green grew by one on Sunday to 12.

The town of Mayfield in Graves County was also hit especially hard, with eight people were killed and eight still unaccounted for at a candle factory. Across the county, 20 deaths have been confirmed.

Asked whether candle factory workers received sufficient warning about the storm, Gov Beshear said: “It’s too early in where we are to know any changes that ought to be made in the future. I believe this is going to end up being an EF-5 tornado, which you can have the warnings but what do you do?”

Gov Beshear said thousands of Kentuckians lost their homes and nearly 30,000 remained without power as of Monday.

He said President Joe Biden is planning to visit the state, but a date for that trip has not been set.