Guard Patrols 2 Cities in Kentucky as 3 States Recover From Twisters

The National Guard patrolled two Kentucky cities today under states of emergency declared after at least 20 tornadoes sliced through three states, killing six people, injuring more than 100 and leaving 70,000 people without power.

The tornadoes and winds of up to 90 m.p.h. that struck late Monday afternoon in Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky left Cincinnati’s airport--across the Ohio River in Erlanger, Ky.--a shambles, with up to 50 planes damaged beyond repair, officials said.

“It’s a complete disaster,” said San Juan Romero, an air traffic manager at the airport. “A bomb could not have done the damage this has done.”

Across the three states, the storms and tornadoes tore roofs from buildings, sent mobile homes flying and ripped into the city of Covington, Ky., also across the Ohio River from Cincinnati.

Two men died in Indiana, one of them when a barn collapsed on him after he had sought refuge inside. There were three deaths in Ohio when twisters flattened houses. A man using a chain to hold down a barn roof in western Kentucky died when it blew off, dragging him 78 feet.

Preschool Roof Falls

In Johnson County, south of Indianapolis, a roof at a day-care center caved in on 130 preschoolers, but only three suffered injuries, all of them minor, said Rhea Furry, the center’s director.

In Covington, officials declared an emergency and warned nonresidents to keep out after high winds knocked out power to most of the city and ripped the roofs from dozens of buildings. About 50 National Guard troops were sent there, said Gordon Nichols of the state Division of Disaster and Emergency Services.

“At about 20 minutes till 5, we heard this really strong wind. The next thing, it sounded like a bomb went off,” said John Carey, who was working in his advertising agency near downtown Covington.

Damage Put at $10 Million

Officials said high winds damaged an estimated 425 homes in Lexington, Ky., including about 55 destroyed, with damage estimated at $8 million to $10 million. Mayor Scotty Baesler declared a state of emergency today.

Nichols said 80 National Guardsmen were sent to the town of Newport. “Newport is probably the worst hit area in northern Kentucky,” he said.

At least 44 people were injured in Kentucky, state officials said. The weather service in Ohio said it had reports of 20 to 30 injuries, and in Indiana meteorologist John T. Curran said he expected the injury count would be around 50.

The winds knocked down power lines throughout the area. Almost 20,000 people in the Indianapolis area were left in the dark, but power was restored to all but 400 by early this morning, officials said.