The Washington County Sheriff’s Office said there was severe damage.
One person was killed and at least seven others were injured when a tornado struck several houses in central Kentucky on Friday morning, officials said.
Kevin Devine, the emergency management director in Washington County, said that the tornado had hit two or three houses and had caused severe damage to several other homes in a rural part of the county, which has about 12,250 residents. Photos posted by the Washington County Sheriff’s Office showed debris strewed across the ground and an overturned car.
There is no tornado siren in the area, Mr. Devine said, and the first call for help came in at about 7:10 a.m.
When search-and-rescue crews, firefighters, sheriff’s deputies and emergency medical workers responded, they found trees blocking the small, one-lane road into the area, he said.
After cutting a path for ambulances to get through, the crews found that one person had been killed and at least seven people had been injured, including two who drove themselves to the hospital, Mr. Devine said.
A 3-year-old who had been reported missing was also found and taken to a hospital, he said, adding that he did not have any information on the child’s condition.
G. Len Benedict, the Washington County coroner, said in an interview that the person who had been killed was a 48-year-old-man.
Mr. Devine said there was also flash flooding in the area, which has small creeks that rise and then recede quickly when it rains heavily. Several roads had flooded, he said, but had since reopened.
Timothy E. Graves, the judge executive in Washington County, thanked emergency workers for their swift response to the storm.
“It is an isolated area, but it is total devastation,” he told a local news outlet, GNG Productions, adding that two houses that had families inside were “just totally destroyed.”
Gov. Andy Beshear of Kentucky posted a message on social media asking people to “please pray for these families and everyone affected.” He said he was postponing planned trips to Laurel and Pulaski Counties because of the severe weather.
“Everyone, please stay weather aware today,” he said in another message. “Let’s do what’s needed to keep everyone safe.”
The National Weather Service has warned of possible severe storms with wind damage, large hail and a few tornadoes across much of the Mid-Atlantic and southeastern United States on Friday. The Weather Service also said that heavy rain may cause flash flooding from eastern Kentucky to southern New York.
This is a developing story.
