At least 27 people were killed on May 16 after the catastrophic storms and tornadoes swept through Kentucky, Missouri, and Virginia, with some of the twisters reaching EF4 on the Enhanced-Fujita scale, one of the two most destructive ratings.

Worst hit was London, a town in Kentucky, about 75 miles south of Lexington. It was battered by an EF4 tornado with 170 mile per hour winds, with survivors emerging from shelter to find much of the town destroyed and neighbors trapped under the debris.

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