Dolly Parton Addresses Those Who Lost Family Members in Nashville Tornado: ‘We’re With You’
As Nashville residents check in on their loved ones and survey the damage caused by the tornado that struck the city early Tuesday morning (March 3), Dolly Parton was among the country stars to extend her support over social media.
"Well, I'm here on the job today, because as they say, the show must go on," the country icon says in a video message. "But we had a lot of damage out in our area. I know a lot of Nashville was just devastated with the storms. And I just wanted you to know that we are all with you and hope that your family's okay and that your property's gonna be able to get mended pretty soon, get your lights back on."
While Parton sent out her support to all those affected by the storms, she focused particularly on those who lost loved ones overnight. "To those that really lost family members, I'm sorry about that. Our prayers are with you. And so I just wanted to shout out and say, 'We're with you,'" she continues.
The tornado ripped through the city's East Nashville and Germantown areas just before 1AM, destroying more than 40 buildings and damaging many more. Among the buildings destroyed by the storm is beloved music hot spot the Basement East, which partially collapsed.
Fatalities quickly began emerging early Tuesday morning, too. As of about 11:30AM CT, the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency (TEMA) reported that 22 people died in the tornado. Two of the were from Nashville's Davidson County, while others were from elsewhere in Middle Tennessee, including three deaths in Wilson County, one in Benson County and 16 in Putnam County. Aside from the fatalities, many more people have been injured.
More Country Stars React to the Nashville Tornado