On December 10 and 11, a large weather system unleashed almost 40 tornadoes that touched down in parts of Arkansas, Missouri, Mississippi, Illinois, Tennessee and Kentucky, leaving hundreds of thousands without power, hundreds without shelter and more than 100 feared dead in Kentucky alone. The hardest-hit area has been Mayfield, Kentucky.
Damage to infrastructure has been widespread, with hundreds in the region without shelter. More than 400 people have been displaced in Mayfield. The injured are being sent to local hospitals, suffering mostly from chemical burns, fractures, crush injuries and other trauma. Needs assessments are being performed in the affected areas by local emergency management agencies, and more information will likely become available as efforts continue.
International Medical Corps mobilized an emergency response team to conduct damage and needs assessments of the hardest-hit communities in Kentucky. We are working closely with local, state and federal emergency management officials and local organizations. We are also working closely with local organizations to provide hygiene kits and other household items for families that have been displaced, as well as other supplies and support to reinstate essential health and social services.
International Medical Corps' approach is to help people help themselves to the extent possible, ensuring a sustained impact in the communities we serve. A first responder for nearly four decades, we maintain extensive experience building back better. In recent years, International Medical Corps has responded to Hurricane Ida in Louisiana, Hurricane Dorian in North Carolina, Hurricane Michael in Florida and Hurricane Florence in North Carolina.
