More than two dozen people were killed and dozens more injured as powerful tornadoes and severe storms ripped across Illinois, Missouri, Indiana, Kentucky, Virginia and even parts of the Washington, D.

Nine tornadoes struck Missouri and Kentucky on May 16, including a deadly EF3 in Scott County that killed two people and destroyed homes. The National Weather Service confirmed tornadoes up to EF4 strength.

The National Weather Service in Paducah has confirmed that at least nine tornadoes touched down across the western Kentucky, Illinois, and Missouri region Friday afternoon and evening.

At least 21 people are dead in Kentucky and Missouri on Saturday after a night of severe weather and tornadoes battered cities large and small across the two states, with officials warning the death toll is likely to rise. At least 14 people have been killed in Kentucky while seven have been reported dead in Missouri, according to state officials.

Portsmouth-based Mercy Chefs, a disaster relief organization, is providing aid in Kentucky and Missouri following a deadly tornado outbreak in the region.

Authorities in Kentucky expect the death toll of 14 to increase as they continue to search the ravaged areas. Nine of the dead were in Laurel County, where a tornado hit just before midnight on May 16, the sheriff's office said. Many more were injured there.