LONDON, Kentucky — Following the EF4 tornado that struck Laurel County in Kentucky, the city and neighboring counties united to restore and rebuild the community.

The tornado hit Laurel County around midnight on Friday, May 16, leaving 17 dead and two in critical care, according to Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear.

The tornado damaged the southern part of the city, knocking down houses and businesses, including the London-Corbin airport and Levi Jackson State Park, according to London Mayor Randall Weddle.

Weddle said first responders quickly arrived at the damaged neighborhoods, transporting over 80 victims to the hospitals Saturday morning and pulling hundreds more out of the rubble caused by the storm.

The first responders gathered fallen branches, assorted metals, broken traffic lights and other debris into piles in the airport’s parking lot to clean the streets after the storm.

Weddle said the county mobilized all its resources for tornado relief, accepting aid from neighboring counties in Kentucky such as Fayette, Clay and Castle.

“You have 50 men and they’re being pulled 1,000 ways,” Weddle said. “But once the call went out from our communication center that we needed help, they (mutual aid) came from everywhere.”

A day after the initial storm, Weddle said the city set up a relief center outside London-Corbin airport, operating 24/7 and delivering supplies to tornado victims. 

According to Weddle, the relief center has been dispatching teams every two hours to deliver food, portable restrooms and cleaning supplies to neighborhoods and to transport victims to temporary accommodations like hotels or shelters.

“This is my city, my jurisdiction, but right now I’m just Laurel County,” Weddle said. “Whatever anybody needs . . . we’re going to be there and we’re going to get them, whether it’s a shovel or plastic bags, whatever.”

Hobie Daugherty, public affairs officer for the London Police Department, said the department was already operational and preparing for relief efforts before the storm. He said teams temporarily took shelter during the tornado to ensure they could respond within seconds.

Daugherty said first responders have been working overtime in Laurel County for disaster relief, saying he has had to force officers to go home and rest.

With the community still recovering, Daugherty said he has only slept six hours in four days,  because he knows people still need help and still need to be “saved.”

“We’ve been out here non-stop. We have had several guys running on two or three hours of sleep just so they could be out here,” Daugherty said. “We have guys that have probably already put in 40 plus hours since it (the storm) happened.”

Seeing the town he grew up in destroyed was “heartbreaking,” but he didn’t have time to process the damage as he focused on saving the storm’s victims, Daugherty said.

“The amount of damage and devastation, I wouldn’t wish that on my worst enemy. You know, it’s just unreal. It looked like a war zone,” Daugherty said.

Daugherty said he “stopped in his tracks” upon seeing the town.

“You see pictures, and we’ve all seen pictures of tornadoes and natural disasters on the Internet and paper and things like that,” Daugherty said. “But ‘til you see it firsthand with your own two eyes, or you’re right there in the middle of it, you just can’t describe it, and words can’t describe it.”

Laurel County resident Shelley Gregory said her whole family lives on Kermit Jones Road and their homes were all destroyed in the tornado. She said seeing her childhood home being reduced to rubble was awful.

Gregory said she initially hid in her living room, moving to the interior bathroom at the last moment. She said she was glad she did as the tornado blew her living room out of her house.

After 45 seconds, the tornado had moved past their house, and Gregory said seeing the damage left behind put her in shock.

“When something like this happens, you’re in a survival mode. You’re in your adrenaline’s high, and you don’t even realize what has happened,” Gregory said. “Honestly, when I first walked out, it didn’t seem real.”

According to Gregory, the first responders arrived at her house minutes after the storm had passed, making sure she and her family were OK and providing them with supplies to help with the cleanup process.

Gregory said seeing the support from outside communities and first responders is the only thing that has helped her through the natural disaster. She said it was “absolutely mind-blowing” and gave her a new positive outlook on the world.

“I have really lost a lot of faith in humanity over the last couple of years, especially here in Laurel County,” Gregory said. “Things have just been crazy, and I had a real negative outlook on things and people in general, but this restored my faith in humanity and now I know there are absolutely wonderful people in this world.”

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said he has applied to the federal government for temporary housing for those affected and to the Federal Emergency Management Agency aid for the city. 

Beshear said he had visited the town twice since the storm, saying he wanted to show the city that he stood with them and that their government would be there every step of the rebuilding process.

“Every time I’ve seen somebody staring at what used to be their house or their business saying, ‘Where do I start?’” Beshear said. “Ten Kentuckians show up and say, ‘How about you start with us?’”