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LAUREL COUNTY, Ky. – The assemblage of Laurel County, Kentucky, is grieving the nonaccomplishment of much than a twelve people, including a firefighter who spent astir 4 decades helping others, aft a tornado destroyed his neighborhood portion helium was connected duty.
Laurel County Fire Department Maj. Leslie "Les" Roger Leatherman died Friday nighttime aft a tornado ripped done the Sunshine Hills subdivision extracurricular of London, Kentucky.
"His location is thing but blocks now; his location doesn't exist," Laurel County Fire Department Deputy Chief Terry Wattenbarger told FOX Weather.
Leatherman responded to a telephone connected Friday nighttime and was returning location erstwhile the tornado unfolded.
‘IT LOOKS LIKE A BOMB WENT OFF’: TORNADO LEAVES TRAIL OF DEVASTATION IN KENTUCKY
Leatherman’s wife, Michelle, was critically injured and remains successful captious but unchangeable condition. The mates was recovered successful a tract astir 150 to 300 feet distant from their home.
Maj. Leslie "Les" Roger Leatherman, of the Laurel County Fire Department, was killed erstwhile a tornado deed his vicinity connected May 16, 2025.
(Laurel County Fire Department / FOX Weather)
"It really appears that helium gave his beingness to prevention her life," Wattenbarger said.
Wattenbarger is simply a lifelong person and chap archetypal responder with Leatherman. The brace graduated from precocious schoolhouse unneurotic and joined the unpaid occurrence department.
Wattenbarger said his person apt died doing what helium dedicated his beingness to: helping others.
"He was conscionable genuinely a nationalist servant astatine heart," Wattenbarger said.
After unpaid occurrence service, Leatherman became an exigency aesculapian technician, past a 911 relation and a Kentucky State Police dispatcher. Prior to his passing, helium was an adjunct manager astatine Whitley County 911.
"His full life, unpaid and vocation has been thing but nationalist work and giving of himself to the nationalist and trying to instrumentality attraction of different people's emergencies," Wattenbarger said.
Leatherman’s decease marks the archetypal line-of-duty decease for the section since 1962.
Tornado harm successful Laurel County, Kentucky.
(@jsmithwx / FOX Weather)
Leatherman is survived by his wife, Michelle; son, Evan; daughter-in-law, Amber; and his 2 grandchildren. Wattenbarger said helium was a arrogant genitor and loved his lad "endlessly."
"He was a precise arrogant parent. He loved Evan endlessly. Evan played shot and Les was perpetually conscionable bragging connected Evan, you know, however bully helium was doing successful soccer. And erstwhile helium got grandkids, helium was adjacent prouder of his grandkids," helium said.
In his 39 years of service, Wattenbarger estimates that May 16 is the worst section earthy catastrophe successful Laurel County. Both seasoned firefighters responded to a deadly tornado successful March 2012, which claimed the lives of six people.
At slightest 17 lives successful Laurel County were taken during the terrible upwind and tornado lawsuit connected Friday. The decease toll besides continues to emergence successful the neighboring counties of eastbound Kentucky.
Tornado harm successful London, Kentucky arsenic seen connected May 17, 2025.
(London Mayor Randall Weddle / FOX Weather)
The Sunshine Hill subdivision suffered unimaginable destruction. Another Laurel County firefighter responding to the tornado besides suffered a implicit nonaccomplishment of his home, Wattenbarger said.
The section is continuing to respond to the earthy catastrophe and mourn the nonaccomplishment of a large nationalist servant.
"We're survivors, and we're going to continue. He would privation america to do, and that is to supply the work that helium provided for his past to the assemblage of Laurel County."
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