NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Central Tennessee residents and emergency workers cleaned up Sunday from severe weekend storms and tornadoes that killed six people and sent more to the hospital while damaging buildings, turning over vehicles and knocking out power to tens of thousands.
Three people, including a toddler, were killed after severe weather moved through Madison, about 10 miles north of Nashville. The Metro Nashville Police Department identified the victims as 37-year-old Joseph Dalton; 31-year-old Floridema Gabriel Perez; and Perez’s son, 2-year-old Anthony Elmer Mendez. Dalton was inside his mobile home when the storm forced the mobile home to roll on top of Perez’s home.
According to officials, Perez’s 7-year-old son and Dalton’s 10-year-old son were inside their respective homes at the time of the incident. They were both transported to Vanderbilt Pediatrics with non-life-threatening injuries.
Authorities declared a State of Emergency for Metro Nashville and Davidson County.
Three more people were killed in Clarksville, about 50 miles northwest of Nashville. Officials confirmed the victims were two adults and a child, but no other details were released. Almost two dozen other residents were being treated at the hospital.
A State of Emergency and a curfew were declared in Clarksville as crews worked to clear the damages and find any other victims.
“This is devastating news and our hearts are broken for the families of those who lost loved ones. The City stands ready to help them in their time of grief,” Clarksville Mayor Joe Pitts added.
In Nashville, the roof of a church north of downtown collapsed during the storm, resulting in 13 people being treated at hospitals, Nashville emergency officials said in a news release. They were later listed in stable condition.
Thousands remained without power Sunday morning, Nexstar’s WKRN reports.
Residents in the region are familiar with severe weather in late fall. Saturday’s storm came nearly two years to the day after the National Weather Service recorded 41 tornadoes through a handful of states, including 16 in Tennessee and eight in Kentucky. A total of 81 people died in Kentucky alone.
The National Weather Service issued on Saturday multiple tornado warnings in Tennessee, and said it planned to survey an area where an apparent tornado hit in Kentucky. It’s not yet clear how many tornadoes hit the region.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
