Deaths Confirmed After Tornado Hits Amazon Warehouse in Illinois

U.S.|Deaths are confirmed astatine an Amazon warehouse successful Illinois that took a nonstop hit.

• Dec. 11, 2021, 7:26 a.m. ET

The constabulary successful Edwardsville, Ill., said determination were “confirmed fatalities” astatine an Amazon warehouse aft a nonstop deed from a tornado caused a large information of the gathering to illness connected Friday night, leaving “catastrophic harm to a important portion” of the building.

It was not instantly known however galore radical had died. The constabulary said connected Saturday greeting that they were notifying adjacent of kin.

“Right now, our interest is trying to get radical who are trapped,” Herbert Simmons, the manager of the St. Clair County Emergency Management Agency, said precocious Friday.

The constabulary did not instantly cognize however galore workers were wrong the gathering erstwhile the tornado struck astir 8:30 p.m. Friday, but Michael Fillback, the Edwardsville constabulary chief, told the St. Louis presumption KDSK-TV connected Saturday greeting that the fig was not “in the hundreds.”

Search-and-rescue operations were continuing arsenic responders worked “to guarantee that everyone who was moving astatine the clip is accounted for,” Chief Fillback said. A autobus carried respective workers to reunite with families successful adjacent Pontoon Beach, helium said.

The tornado caused the illness of a partition the size of a shot tract astatine the warehouse, on with the extortion supra it, according to The Associated Press.

“The information and well-being of our employees and partners is our apical precedence close now,” Richard Rocha, an Amazon spokesman, said successful a connection connected Friday night, according to The A.P. “We’re assessing the concern and volition stock further accusation erstwhile it’s available.”

Amazon opened 2 warehouses successful Edwardsville, astir 25 miles eastbound of St. Louis, successful 2016, employing astir 2,200 people, The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported successful 2017.