One of the youngest victims of the devastating Kentucky tornadoes is a 2-month-old girl who died on Monday from the disaster which utterly destroyed her family’s home two days ago.
Heartbroken parents Douglas and Jackie, revealed in a Facebook post that their 2-month-old daughter, Oaklynn Koon, succumbed to her injuries Monday morning.
In the Facebook post, which shows his daughter’s tiny hand in his, Douglas wrote: “At least I know who will be watching over you up there for me. My dad. God, this doesn’t seem real.”
The parents confirmed their daughter’s death just shortly before Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear released official death toll numbers for the state.
A shaken Andy Beshear released the state’s Monday official death toll numbers to be at least 74, with over one hundred people still missing in Kentucky after tornadoes ravaged the area.
However, it was unclear if the official death toll included Oaklynn. Baby Oaklynn had spent forty-eight hours in the hospital after the deadly tornado tore through her hometown of Dawson Springs late Friday.
The innocent baby girl suffered multiple seizures in the hospital, and doctors believe she may have had a stroke, according to her parents.
Just hours after Oaklynn was pronounced dead, her parents said: “It’s not looking good guys at all. The machines are keeping her alive. Her head swelled really bad. She doesn’t have activity. I’m in shock; my heart feels absolutely shattered. We love you, Oakie.”
According to Oaklynn’s parents, they huddled their daughter in a bathroom with her brothers when the twister struck. The family was then sent “flying” from the tornado’s force and ended up at a neighbor’s home.
Oaklynn and her older brother Dallas were hospitalized. Dallas was treated and then discharged on Sunday, while Oaklynn died on Monday.
Photos posted on social media show the family’s home was utterly destroyed by the tornado. Children’s toys could be scattered among the debris.
Mayor of Dawson Springs, Chris Smiley, estimated on Sunday that the tornado wiped out 75 percent of their small town.
Dawson Springs alone saw at least 14 dead, with more than 100 people still missing, according to officials.
Kentucky was by far the most affected state in the deadly disaster that struck across several Midwest states Friday night.
In some places, the storms made door-to-door searches impossible as authorities are still trying to determine the total number of death.
“There are no doors,” Beshear previously said. “We’re going to have over 1,000 homes that are gone, just gone.”
