NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Severe storms tore through central Tennessee, resulting in the deaths of six people and sending about two dozen to the hospital as homes and businesses were damaged in multiple cities. Three people, including a child, were killed after an apparent tornado struck Montgomery County north of Nashville near the Kentucky state line, according to county officials. The Nashville Emergency Operation Center reported that three people were killed by severe storms in a neighborhood just north of downtown, with another 23 people treated for injuries at hospitals in Montgomery County.
Photos posted by the Clarksville fire department on social media showed damaged houses, a tractor trailer flipped on its side on a highway, and insulation ripped out of building walls. Clarksville Mayor Joe Pitts expressed devastation and extended support to the families of those who lost loved ones.
The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department identified the victims killed north of downtown as Joseph Dalton, 37; Floridema Gabriel Perez, 31, and her son, Anthony Elmer Mendez, 2. No further information about the other three deaths was immediately available Saturday night. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said he and his wife, Maria, were praying for all Tennesseans affected by the storms.
Residents were asked to stay at home while first responders evaluated the situation. A shelter was set up at a local high school. The National Weather Service issued multiple tornado warnings in Tennessee and planned to survey an area where an apparent tornado hit in Kentucky. More than 80,000 electricity customers were without power in Tennessee on Saturday night, according to PowerOutage.us. The 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.