The devastating tornado that hit the Edwardsville region of Illinois Friday had claimed the lives of six Amazon employees after a building collapsed on dozens of people working inside a local company's warehouse.
The Edwardsville Fire Department confirmed Saturday evening that six fatalities were recorded at the site of the collapse with forty-five people rescued from under the wreck.
“Earlier this afternoon, the response portion of this incident came to a close and we’re now focused solely on recovery,” Chief James Whiteford said at a press conference.
Whiteford added that crews will keep looking “for evidence of life” during the recovery phase that will take three days.
Meanwhile, Amazon Worldwide Consumer CEO Dave Clark said that the company was extremely devastated by the massive disaster.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their loved ones, and everyone who has been impacted by the storm’s path across the U.S.”
“We’re continuing to provide support to our employees and partners in the area and across the communities affected by the storms. We also want to thank all of the first responders for their ongoing efforts on the scene,” Clark added.
