through eight states. entire towns leveled in the blink of an eye is a the storm swept through friday night. officials say one single tornado actually carved a path of destruction more than 200 miles long and they fear more than 80 people may have been killed. search-and-rescue teams are working around the clock for survivors who may be trapped under mountains of debris. the heads of homeland security and fema are in the region today bringing with them much-needed federal resources. mayfield, kentucky is seeing some of the worst of the damage. a few buildings left standing in the town of roughly 10,000. rescuers sifting through a collapsed candle factory there where more than 100 people were working and so far only about 40 people have been rescued from the wreckage. and new video shows what's left of an amazon warehouse in edwardsville, illinois. at least six people died when the building collapsed during a violent tornado there: people are considered dead and the scale of destruction is unprecedented. >> i think it's incredibly nunchlt nunchlt. we do see tornadoes in december but one this late in the year. the severity and the amount of time these tornadoes spent on the ground is unprecedented. >> cnn's pamela brown anchoring our coverage in mayfield, kentucky. the pictures are extraordinary. you are from kentucky. i'm wondering, you know, people that you know, were they impacted by this storm? >> no one that i know personally. i grew up up a few hours away from here in lexington but, of course, if you're a kentuckyian you feel the kinship with others and i've been going around and talking to folks here and it's been incredible to see how kentucky's have been here an in the town square. clerks from across kentucky have come to salvage the historic documents that are hundreds of years old, important documents, voter reg strarks wedding certificates, that kind of thing, and so you're really seeing people come together as they also try to said that i sp. he said -- his town has been decimated. we do have a team of reporters covering the devastation. i want to go first to cnn's brynn gingras also here in mayfield. i've also been talking to people. what are you hearing? >> reporter: yeah, pam, like you said, there's a lot of people coming out and helping others and there's a dig community. so many are in disbelief. their landscape and neighborhoods are completely different than they were just a few days ago. they are surveying come of their home and taking out some of the possessions and see what they have left. this is what we are seeing across mayfield. >> there are so many people who are just so happy to they will you about. this is a meese of prywood. his 6-year-old daughter and girlfriend were inside a crawl space and he said he felt the strength of ten men pulling from the opposite side as the tornado ripped through and past their house. i want you to listen to how they kept their 6-year-old daughter calm during that storm. >> i just told her to close her eyes, and she started counting, so show's like -- she's like hide and seek, mom, so we just counted until we didn't feel any more pressure any more wind, and then we stayed down there until we had other people letting us know, that you know, whether there's supposed to be two more i think, so i wasn't coming out of here until -- until we know for sure it was okay. >> and when they did come out of their house, a foot off of its foundation, they feel they are the lucky ones. after he held this shut for his family and he ran down the street to talk to his -- >> and we just lost briynn gingras there. it's very difficult out here in the may help. tornado that swept through mayfield, kentucky. cnn's paolo sandoval is in edwards, ilnoirk the site of the warehouse collapse. paolo, what are you seeing there? >> a full-on cleanup process that's happening right now as crews are doing so confidently that everybody has been accounted. police are saying they no longer have any missing person's reports that are still pending when it comes to the amazon warehouse that you see behind me. this was or actually is a shipping center that was used obviously to ship products throughout the region here. now what we do know is, again, authorities right now, in fact, you can see it from there, from here. you can see how the tornado cut a large gap and you can see them clearing out portion of the building that have been compromised. meantime, authorities released the identities of those people who did not save. they are ages ranging from 26 to 62 years old. hi an opportunity to speak to the family of clayton cope, a 29-year-old maintenance worker with amazon here that sadly did not make it out alive. she's certainly emotional as she described a remarkable and kind individual that her son was. mean time, we know that amazon representatives have been out working with crews. ness the way one person described. >> the tornado warning and siren went off and we had 11 minutes from that time to hit the ground in order to get our partners and employees into a safe place. our managers were on the loudspeaker telling people to get to the shelter place area. they were also being guided by other managers and other employees who were trying to get everybody to the safe location. we had people in two different sheltering areas. >> separately another amazon spokesperson telling me that they are still actively working with the community to make sure that they have the resources that they have and most mother-in-law to work with the family members that have been affected, especially, pamela, for the familiar lifts six workers who died on friday night. >> all right. thanks so much, paolo sandoval live for us in illinois. cnn's ed lavandera is in dawson spring, kentucky, another town decimated by the storms. ed, you're not so far away from me. ed, describe what you're seeing here. >> here in dawson spring, the emergency management director for this county tells us two-thirds of this city have been decimated by the torn dough and it's a zech and rescue operation day. there's a group of volunteers back here trying to help a young per who has lost medication for one of her special needs children going through the rubble there trying to find a small box with that medicine in there. the scope and the devastation of the damage here is really just brett taking. we're told that the storm damage goes from the western europe county line all the way to the eastern county line. it's extensive. and if you have a camera shot you can see the intensity of the damage. cars stacked on top of each other in this neighborhood. it is really, pamela, just breath taking to take all of this in and still sdafrls after the storm hit, still coming to terms with what happened, and if you look at the damage here at this home that you see right here, this is one of the spots that people here in this neighborhood are really touched by. there were two elderly sisters who lived in this home together we are told by several neighbors here. we're told that those two women are some of the ten people that were killed here in this county by the storm damage, so a great deal of sadness as people are mourning the loss of these beloved neighbors. that's what people here, pamela, are dealing with so much and so intensely today as search-and-rescue operations continue. pamela. >> they sure do here in mayfield. i know they are still there at the candle factory doing the hard work. many of them have been up for days. they have worked a full shift since the tornado and have not stopped. paolo sandoval and brirn gingras, thank you so much. fredericka, i've been going around this up to and talking to people. it's amazing to see how many volunteers there are handing out water. i spoke to one family who said that they actually went to church this morning in a sanctuary that somehow was unscathed by the tornado. that's right here in the town square and as you can imagine that sort of fellowship getting together with your fellow community members in the wake of this so important. fredericka? >> the generosity clearly is unstoppable and that began with that night that the tornado hit, some of the first people to jump into action tried to move the debris to save people in that candle factory, just ordinary citizens who came out to help, extraordinary. thank you so much, pamela. check back with you. homeland security alejandro mayorkas and female administrator chris well are meeting with kentucky's governor today and getting a briefing from the disaster zone. they are expected to hold a press conference in the next hour from mayfield, connecticut, and we'll try to bring that live. in the meantime governor andy bashear spoke with jake tapper this morning to see how the storm is impacting his community. here's what he had to say. >> this is the deadliest tornado event that we've ever had. i think it's going to be the longest and deadliest torch doe event in u.s. history. we know that one of these tornadoes was on the ground over 227 miles and, jake, 200 were in kentucky of i've got towns that are gone, that are just -- i mean gone. my dad's hometown. half of it isn't standing. it is hard to describe. i know people can see the visuals which goes on for 12 blocks or more in some of these places and it's going to take us time. you think you go door-to-door to see if they are okay. the question is there's no doors. the problem is there's thousands upon thousands of structures. it's devastating. the massive widespread damage makes rescue efforts a challenge. if we haven't found somebody by now it's -- it's of really great concern. the area that was hit the hardest, mayfield, i was there yesterday. we'll be back today, certainly a candle factory. it will be a miracle should we pull anybody else out of that. >> kentucky governor bashir and we do know that if you want to help with the tragedy the cnn world site has verified ways to do that just. it will be updated as more information on resources becomes available. go there right now. visit cnn.com/impact to learn more about how can you help. still ahead, a small u.s. congressional delegation is right now in the capitol of ukraine as tensions rise at its border with russia. our exclusive interview with a congressman who is hart of that delegation next. the new sensodyne repair and protect with deep repair has the science to show that the toothpaste goes deep inside the exposed dentin to help repair sensitive teeth. my patients are able to have that quality of life back. i recommend sensodyne repair and protect with deep repair. your record label is taking off. but so is your sound engineer. you need to hire. i need indeed. indeed you do. indeed instant match instantly delivers quality candidates matching your job description. visit indeed.com/hire why hide your skin if dupixent has your moderate-to-severe eczema, or atopic dermatitis under control? 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[coins clinking in jar] ♪ you can get it if you really want it, by jimmy cliff ♪ [suitcase closing] [gusts of wind] [ding] all right. cnn can exclusively report that right now there is a small u.s. congressional delegation in the capital of ukraine, kiev. they are there to assess the situation as russian troops have built up a massive preps along the ukranian border. a member of the delegation is joining us now. congressman, can you tell always when fifth amassed more introduce there is a serious threat to ukraine, and very to accept that that is occurring and be prepared to oak on this. >> how did the trip of the russ. i'm a xhem of the sib comety chairman and the under that jurisdiction i have a couple of areas, particularly and things like are you in the special forced. i -- we need a clear understanding of what's happening in the ukraine, both from the ukraine side and from the government side so it ended up being even a more special time concerning the vaurnt this i'm dealing with. you to ups that we as liberal democracies to make sure that so. >> the warnings are only growing louder. president biden and the putin had their pre-conference but does anything thing that president biden will access to warnings take into account what's important to his country. a lot of what they kind of figure is their national -- their international status. dependent in terms of think they are necessary advice and it's a very difficult situation for us to calculate what putin is going to do, but in my opinion it's always important to believe what someone is telling you that they are, and if they are showing you that they want to invade ukraine, they are going to intend to do it and we might as well plan for it and we should make sure that we're helping out ukraine in terms of the capability for them to resist this invasion. >> your instinct tells you more that he, putin, is more likely to try to invade ukraine as opposed to this being a moment of just simply flexing his muscle and then possibly retreating. >> i think some point, you know, given enough room housep will do something whether it's one month or five years no now. russians don't understand real rickies in. we and stand with our allies and the people of ukraine because anything less than that gives ukraine the right to invai without any more. is there anything that you're able notch -- is there anything that you hope to gain from this trip? >> i can tell you what's already in the public domain. there's more than 100,000 russian troops amassing on the ukraine porter. we know that they have been very aggressive when it comes to the border. they have acted in a very illegal manner in the past so we shouldn't be surprised if they try to act in an illegal manner in the future. the best is that we have a unified voice with our partners and say we will resist any attempts from russia to take more sovereign land of ukraine. >> and you said, you were leaning towards reading putin's actions as it's most likely, inevitable that he invades crew crane. >> what options are on the table for the u.s.? >> yeah. number one, we need to go to exteam sanctions in russia. in 2040 they shot down a civilian airliner killing more than all on board. there needs to be a lot of extreme sanctions. >> define extreme sanctions. >> as i say, shut them off from the u.s. dollar so they can't trade anymore or for them to involvement or tell they have to go two a secondary market and if that end up being the euro we also have to put pressure on that. we're willing to pack ukraine especial hi when it comes to resistance. we need to give them the opportunity to resist a russian invasion, both prior to the invasion and even post-invasion making sure we'll bring in weaponry that will actually put a toll on the russian troop movements and, know, unfortunately that means we have to kill some russians, and that's the only thing they understand. they only understand pure power and when to give the ukranian army and special forces the ability to do that. >> do you feel you have full cooperation with allied nations. >> look what, what i understand in conversations with the administration we do have -- again, there's aamodt more work when it comes the influx and the inshigs of we need to accept that that might happen i think there's a lot of people in the united states government as well is at european theater that are. >> georgia where he's acted here and other people around the frrld t.a.r.p. -- we need to gather our allies and make them strong enough to go forward with it. >> congressman, have a safe trip while there and, of course, in your trip back to the u.s. >> thank you for your time. >> straight ahead, search-and-rescue options continue at the tune tune pm that had over 100 workers in signed when the snow fires yes, please! neuriva. think bigger. wow... that's so nice! is that a photo of tepechitlan? 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(cheers) xfinity brought us together, after all! power your whole home this holiday with wifi speeds faster than a gig. click, call, or visit a store today. sing 2 . as the full scope of the deadly week wrapped tornadoes unfolds, help is pouring in from all parts of the country. mayfield consumer products which operates a candle factory decimated by the tornado has put up a website to receive donations. it says 100% of those donations will be given to victim relief. the ceo of the family-owned company spoke with cnn's nadia romero earlier this morning. >> our factory was built as a manufacturing facility, and the concrete walls and the steel frame and the structure you would have -- you would have thought it would have been one of the safest places but ironically this -- as you have see with this devastation there wasn't anything safe about this storm. the protocols for where people go in a tornado disaster is what's deemed to be the safest location, right? fewer in your home go to your bathroom. and in our facility the -- the center of the building and the bathrooms were that location because there's no windows. it's surrounded by concrete walls, steel roof, no windows, no glass. no anything, and so that's where everybody was moved to per the protocol. >> do you plan on changing those protocols knowing that this happened this time? would you do something differently sometime in the future? >> based on all the information i have now, no, i wouldn't do anything different than what we did. do i wish i could change what's happened? 100%. >> what do you say to the criticism that your stores, that your operations should have shut down friday. >> you know, i think that -- i think, again, i think hind sights always 20 to and if i would -- i think any time you know what you know now you always make different decisions when you do that, but i know that we did everything that was supposed to happen. people always have the right to come to work or not and, you know, we don't try to do that. we try to provide opportunity for people and, you know, my heart bleeds for absolutely everyone. yesterday afternoon we got reports of a couple of other people that were pulled from the rubble. as of this morning, you know, fema is on site. we're thankful for fema and the red cross and the state and all of the first responders that came out. unfortunately they have not found anybody else but it's still a rescue mission. we are a resilient community. we are a tight community. i think when the going gets tough, know, we really -- we really stick together. ply mom, our management team came up to you and said god needed this to happen to you because you're part of the family. we're going doing everything as a family and use the global resources that we have to really try to pull everything together and do the best that we can. >> and then earlier cnn's brirn gingras spoke with one young woman who works at that candle factory. her boyfriend's father robert daniel did live there and lost his life during the devastating storms. she told bryn she can't begin to imagine what that moment was like, listen. >> we put our canles first and it's not okay. now people can't take food to their table. what are they going to do? who about the people that are still down there? their kids are wondering what's still going oifnl can't imagine what these people are going through and even though i was here i can't imagine what they are going through, the people under his -- we've got to have more help. there's got to be more people. if they could let me down there i would be digging right now until -- until day break. i would be digging right now if i could. >> lots of heartbreak and anguish there in mayfield, kentucky. all right. coming up, we're starting to get a clear look at the full picture and path of the string of tornadoes that devastated so many states and where storms just might be headed next. we'll bring you the latest forecast straight ahead. 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[uplifting music playing] ♪ i had a dream that someday ♪ ♪ i would just fly, fly away ♪ - [female narrator] they line up by the thousands. each one with a story that breaks your heart. like ravette... every step, brought her pain. their only hope: mercy ships. the largest floating civilian hospital in the world. bringing free surgeries to people who have no other hope. $19 a month will help provide urgently needed surgery for so many still suffering. so don't wait, call the number on your screen. or donate at mercyships.org. ok everyone, our mission is to provide complete, balanced nutrition for strength and energy. whoo hoo! ensure, with 27 vitamins and minerals, now introducing ensure complete! with 30 grams of protein. all right. the national weather service now confirms that at least five powerful f--3 tornadoes hit missouri, illinois and kentucky this weekend and those tornado rankings could go even higher as damage surveys continue. tom saider is with us in the cnn weather center. that's extraordinary to have this kind of cluster of soap high-powered tornadoes all at once. fredericka, yesterday it was 0 tornadoes in six states and now it's over 50 now adding indiana and ohio. to get a mid-december tornado in states such as indiana, illinois and ohio. that's staggering in and of itself. to give you an idea of how everything is connected. remember last woke when we had the big island of hawaii and the record rainfall. that intense parcell of energy mullally madies way to the u.s. jet stream and is responsible for releasing, a we're started to see the warnings are in good place until the final change, monette, arkansas, do minutes long austinically have on average. more on that in a minute. central city. survey crews from louisville, memphis, paducah, around the region are doing due diligence to understand what the tornadoes intensity was, the before and after factor and had the ceo on. our site is 20/20. even with 20-minute lead time where are you going to go. no car, no basement, no cellar? these can be adjusted to ef-4 or higher. when you see the slabs and bark off the freeze. over 100 warnings were issued and each one could be surveyed. takes weeks. typically only three tornadoes in the month of december and in one day we have over 50. a little bit of climate change but we need more information. coldman, we could -- we'll set the stage for another event of course extremely, extremely close. just a cross and many that was shocking, you know, for many of us and to think there's a correlation for us. thank you, tom seder. appreciate it. still ahead, it's been him nine years since one of the deadliest mass into things in the history. we speak to the mother of a 6-year-old do i in the sandy hook shooting and turn the pain into love. ny. guess it's on maggie. should we have another one? talk to us about retirement today. feel comfortable about tomorrow. massmutual. with mucinex all-in-one you've got powerful relief from your worst cold and flu symptoms. so when you need to show your cold who's boss, grab mucinex all-in-one... and get back to your rhythm. ♪ the relief you need. the cash you want. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ experience the power of sanctuary at the lincoln wish list event. you're a one-man stitchwork master. but your staffing plan needs to go up a size. you need to hire. i need indeed. indeed you do. indeed instant match instantly delivers quality candidates matching your job description. visit indeed.com/hire to run a growing business, is to be on a journey. and along the ride, you'll have many questions. challenges. and a few surprises. ♪ but wherever you are on your journey. your dell technologies advisor is here for you - with the right tech solutions. so you can stop at nothing for your customers. [coins clinking in jar] ♪ you can get it if you really want it, by jimmy cliff ♪ [suitcase closing] [gusts of wind] [ding] a. tuesday will mark the knifepoint anniversary of the sandy hook elementary school shooting in 2012 when 20 first graders were murdered at their school in new town, connecticut alongside six staff members. it's one of the deadliest mass shootings in american history. scarlet lewis lost her 6-year-old son jesse that day. she then started an organization in his name called the jesse lewis choose love movement, and scarlet is with us now. i've turned so much main into so much love through this foundation, and i look at your website and you say that jesse lewis choose love movement was inspired by the bravery of a 6-year-old bill boy and a mother's choice to forgive. how have you been able to do that? >> fredericka, thank you so much for having me on. jesse left a message on our kitchen chalkboard shortly before his murder. he wrote three words. nurturing, healing, love, and i felt that that was a message for our family, message of comfort, and i has saw it as marching orders for me because i thought if the shooter had been able to give and receive nurturing, healing, love, the tragedy never would have happened and so that started mow on my journey nine years ago. i knew what happened at sandy hook elementary school was 100% power ventable as are all school shootings. it's just going to require that we all start looking at it in a different way. tell mow about this journey and how you believe you've been able to make han impact. >> there's no ties to deal with school shootings. it's door locks, sole something, sy something programs but clearly not enough. the other is active and proactive and that's what i've dedicated my life to, and that neutralizes the threat a decade before it starts. >> wow. and -- and you recently own partnered with the new hampshire governor chris now new -- chris sununu. tell me about your outreach. >> we've developed programming in school homes and communities all across the country and 120 countries. this rv tour, this bus tour is an extension of our community program, and it's literally bringing this essential life skills to kids and big kids alike and giving them the opportunity for an experiencial experiment so they are they can understand >> you know, here we are, scarlet, sadly, we're at this nine-year marker since sandy hook. and the school shootings haven't stopped. everyone thought that was a moment that would provoke a real change, that it couldn't possibly happen again. so how do you assess what progress or perhaps setbacks have occurred in this nine-year period? >> i think at this point a lot of people are feeling helpless and hopeless. we've had 350 school shootings since sandy hook within the last nine years, and 28 this year alone. but i want everyone to know that they are 100% preventible. it's going to take all of us taking responsibility for the safety of our children, making sure that our kids are equipped with coping skills, emotional management. they are facing difficulties that they've never faced before. and with cell phones, they have 24/7 access to information, some of which can't be unseen. they all have a lot of trauma. we have a pandemic. there's a lot of difficulty that they're facing. and we need to be able to give them skills and tools that help them manage what is going on in their world, and kids that are well adjusted, kids that have good mental health and general health and well-being, they are not going to want to harm themselves or harm others. it's going to have to take us out of this antibullying, all the things that we're doing that focus on problems including suicide and substance abuse and school shootings. we have to rethink all of it, all of those issues are skyrocketing, and all of those issues can be prevented by giving kids essential life skills that they need to make different choices and what we say is choose love. >> and, scarlet, i hear and see your optimism through your smile, and i wonder this tuesday how will you be spending this tuesday? >> this tuesday is going to be very difficult. when you've had a child murdered, it changes everything every day. you never forget it, obviously. this tuesday we can go to the school in the morning and stand in honoring and remembering. we can go visit the memorial that is halfway done that's adjacent to the school. my family and i usually choose to go to jessie's gravesite and be there together for a while, and then go to dinner. it's a very difficult day, it's a day that didn't have to happen, and it's a day that now i share with so many other unfortunate parents. for those that are around those parents in oxford, michigan, and we know that this is going to happen again, unfortunately, really important that you have the courage to do something, to stand with these parents and to honor and remember and to go to your schools and be proactive and to make sure that they have programming that helps the kids address these issues and implement it in your homes and communities. this is something that we can do. we're not helpless and hopeless. we have a lot of hope that we can prevent these school shootings from happening in the future. and that's one i've dedicated my life to, and that's what we do love here at the choose love movement. >> thank you so much, and of course our hearts continue to be with you and the 26 plus families directly impacted there at sandy hook and beyond. thank you so much. >> thank you. all right, we'll be right back. your eyes. beautiful on the outside, but if you have diabetes, there can be some not-so-pretty stuff going on inside. it's true, with diabetic retinopathy, excess sugar can damage blood vessels, causing vision loss or even blindness. so remember this: now is the time to get your eyes checked. eye care is important to your long-term diabetes management. see a path forward with actions and treatments that may help your eyes— and protect against vision loss. visit noweyesee.com and take control of your sight. to see my ancestors' photos was just breathtaking. wow, look at all those! what'd you find? 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[coins clinking in jar] ♪ you can get it if you really want it, by jimmy cliff ♪ [suitcase closing] [gusts of wind] [ding] xfinity rewards are our way of thanking you just for being with us. enjoy rewards like sing family fun nights! rent sing for $1, then belt out all your favorite tunes from the movie with sing karaoke. plus, see sing 2 in theaters with buy-one-get-one free fandango tickets. join over a million members by signing up for free on the xfinity app. our thanks. your rewards. all right. the 15th annual cnn heroes all-star tribute salutes ten extraordinary people who put others first all year long. it airs live tonight at 58 eastern. here's a preview. ♪ >> there was no drinkable water. something inside me started saying you need to do something about it. >> i could not allow one additional life to be lost. i feel the responsibility to help these animals. this is what i was put on this earth to do. >> they started calling me the make-up lady. >> what keeps me going is the resilience of these children. >> we want to give you your second chance at life. it provides you a way to dream. >> we hope people live through something they did not think they would survive. >> i'm just doing the job i'm supposed to do. i think i'm the luckiest doctor that ever lived. >> i want them to know that their brains are beautiful. we have to love each other across our differences. >> if you believe, you will succeed. >> join anderson cooper and kelly ripa live as they name the 2021 hero of the year. >> the 15th annual cnn heroes all-star tribute tonight at 8:00 eastern. >> it's going to be a great show, and it's going to be a tear-jerker. but you will be inspired. it begins tonight at 8:00 p.m. all right. thank you so much for joining me today. i'm fredricka whitfield. the "cnn newsroom" continues with phil mattingly right now. ♪ you are live in the "cnn newsroom." i'm phil mattingly. jim acosta is off today. we begin this hour with a race against time. rescuers are digging through rubble with machines and by hand searching for signs of life after catastrophic tornados ripped through eight states, leaving communities in shambles. more than 80 people including children are feared dead. most of them in kentucky where the governor of the commonwealth expects the death toll will surpas