Search efforts at an Amazon facility in Illinois where at least six people were killed in a tornado were expected to take several days, but authorities said they did not expect to find additional survivors.
The company has not said how many people were in the building not far from St. Louis when the tornado hit at 8:35 p.m. Friday — part of a swarm of twisters across the Midwest and the South that leveled entire communities.
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Search efforts at an Amazon facility in Illinois where at least six people were killed in a tornado were expected to take several days, but authorities said they did not expect to find additional survivors.
Authorities received reports of workers being trapped and the fire unit arrived within six minutes, according to Whiteford. Police helped pull people from the rubble. While 45 employees survived, six people were killed and a seventh person was airlifted to a hospital.
“These walls are made out of 11-inch thick concrete, and they’re about 40 feet tall, so a lot of weight from that came down,” Whiteford said.
Employee Amanda Goss had just started her first week in a new job as an Amazon delivery driver when the tornado hit.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their loved ones, and everyone impacted by the tornado,” Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel said in a statement. “We’re continuing to support our employees and partners in the area.”
Both sides of the warehouse used to prepare orders for delivery collapsed inward and the roof caved, Edwardsville Fire Chief James Whiteford said at a Saturday news conference.
Crews use an excavator to pull down pieces of a damaged roof during search and rescue operations at the Amazon distribution center in Eadwardsville, Ill., on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, after overnight severe storms caused the building to partially collapse. A monstrous tornado, carving a track that could rival the longest on record, ripped through the middle of the U.S. in a stormfront that killed dozens and tore apart a candle factory, crushed a nursing home, derailed a train and smashed an Amazon warehouse. (Daniel ShularSt. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP)
Authorities received reports of workers being trapped and the fire unit arrived within six minutes, according to Whiteford. Police helped pull people from the rubble. While 45 employees survived, six people were killed and a seventh person was airlifted to a hospital.
Whiteford said crews would search the rubble for several days, but considering the significant damage authorities didn’t expect to find further survivors. Authorities have not released names of the victims.
The damage was extensive; the structures steel support pillars were exposed after the walls and roof caved.
Crews move in heavy equipment for search and rescue operations at the Amazon distribution center in Edwardsville, Ill., on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021. Overnight severe storms caused the building to partially collapse with confirmed fatalities according to police. The roof of the building was ripped off and a wall about the length of a football field collapsed. (Daniel ShularSt. Louis Post-Dispatch via AP)
“These walls are made out of 11-inch thick concrete, and they’re about 40 feet tall, so a lot of weight from that came down,” Whiteford said.
Among those hoping for answers was Sarah Biermann, whose husband was an Amazon employee and was dropping off his delivery van Friday evening.
“I have no idea what's going on. We're just worried sick," she told KDSK-TV.
This Sept. 24, 2021, satellite photo provided by Maxar shows an overview of an Amazon warehouse and buildings, in Edwardsville, Ill. Severe storms moved through the area late Friday, Dec. 10, 2021, and caused catastrophic damage across multiple states. (Satellite image ©2021 Maxar Technologies via AP)
Employee Amanda Goss had just started her first week in a new job as an Amazon delivery driver when the tornado hit.
“As I look up, the corner of the building was shaking, and it comes down the garage area and then I felt the gates coming in behind me,” Goss told KTVI-TV. “All I do is sit there in my van hoping it don’t move.”
The Amazon facility, among three in Edwardsville, is a 1.1 million square foot (102,193 square meter) “delivery station” that employs about 190 workers across several shifts, according to Amazon. The facility, which opened in July 2020, prepares orders for “last-mile delivery” to customers. Edwardsville is about 25 miles (40 kilometers) northeast of St. Louis.
This Sept. 24, 2021, satellite photo provided by Maxar shows a close-up view of an Amazon warehouse in Edwardsville, Ill. Severe storms moved through the area late Friday, Dec. 10, 2021, and caused catastrophic damage across multiple states. (Satellite image ©2021 Maxar Technologies via AP)
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their loved ones, and everyone impacted by the tornado,” Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel said in a statement. “We’re continuing to support our employees and partners in the area.”
Amazon said that when a site is made aware of a tornado warning, all employees are notified and directed to move to a shelter.
But company officials declined to answer specific questions about when employees were warned.
This Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021, satellite photo provided by Maxar shows an overview of an Amazon warehouse and buildings, in Edwardsville, Ill., after severe storms moved through the area late the previous evening, causing catastrophic damage. (Satellite image ©2021 Maxar Technologies via AP)
A union representing retail employees that has pushed to organize Amazon employees blasted the company for “dangerous labor practices” for having employees work during the severe weather.
“Time and time again Amazon puts its bottom line above the lives of its employees,” Stuart Appelbaum, President of the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union Requiring, said in a statement. “Requiring workers to work through such a major tornado warning event as this was inexcusable.”