Thousands without heat or water after tornadoes kill dozens in US

The front steps of a house are all that remain after a tornado in Dawson Springs, Kentucky. Picture: Michael Clubb/AP

Residents of a Kentucky town devastated by a tornado could be without heat, water and electricity in chilly temperatures for a “long time”, the mayor has warned, as officials struggle to restore services after a swarm of twisters levelled neighbourhoods and killed dozens of people across five US states.

Authorities are still tallying the devastation from Friday’s storms, although they believe the death toll will be lower than initially feared since it appeared many more people had escaped a candle factory in Mayfield, Kentucky, than first thought.