[6] After crossing into Kentucky, the tornado moved through eleven counties of the Jackson Purchase and Western Coal Field regions, at times becoming wrapped in rain during its almost three-hour lifespan that covered 165.6 miles (266.5 km).

[10] The following day, the SPC noted an increased potential for organized severe thunderstorms in the region between southeastern Arkansas and southern Indiana, and upgraded that area to an enhanced risk.

One storm that formed from the initial mid-afternoon activity near Arkadelphia, Arkansas, matured into a long-lived supercell as it progressed in an unstable, deeply moist, and highly sheared environment.

[16] This cell persisted for more than 550 miles (890 km) over several hours from eastern Arkansas to northeastern Kentucky, producing eleven tornadoes, two of which were large and intense.

At 5:51 p.m. CST, the National Weather Service office in North Little Rock issued the first tornado warning associated with the storm for portions of Jackson, Lawrence, White, and Woodruff counties.

[22][23] By the pre-dawn hours of December 11, a decrease in instability led to a gradual weakening of a line of thunderstorms along the associated cold front from eastern Kentucky southward into central Alabama.

[26] Through the night, the National Weather Service (NWS) issued 149 tornado warnings across Arkansas, Tennessee, Missouri, Mississippi, Kentucky, Illinois, and Indiana.

[31] The tornado initially moved through the north side of Woodland Mills, causing minor damage to roofs and trees, before crossing Tennessee State Route 5.

[47] The tornado then moved into Briensburg at EF2 intensity; houses near and along US 68 sustained partial-to-total roof loss, outbuildings were damaged or destroyed, and a metal truss transmission tower collapsed.

[50][better source needed] In and around Princeton, trees were stripped of their limbs and partially debarked, barns and farm buildings were destroyed, livestock was killed, and cycloidal markings were left in fields outside the town.

[31] Past Midway, the tornado became violent and again reached EF4 intensity as it moved along US 62, causing catastrophic damage as it entered the city of Dawson Springs, located along the Caldwell–Hopkins county line.

Cars were thrown, copious amounts of structural debris was strewn in all directions, countless trees were shredded and debarked, and only rubble remained in the hardest-hit neighborhoods.

Some logistics facilities and warehouses in an industrial park were leveled as the tornado exited the city, as were several metal self-storage-unit buildings and large garages nearby.

A mother and her two children survived with major injuries by hanging on to a mattress as they were thrown 250 feet (76 m) through the air into a field after the tornado swept their Dawson Springs home from its foundation after crushing them underneath it first.

[41][31][53] A photograph from a destroyed house in Dawson Springs was lofted and transported almost 130 miles (210 km) by the intense tornadic updrafts, eventually being found in New Albany, Indiana.

[55][56] Beyond Dawson Springs, the tornado tracked to the northeast, passing north of Ilsley and through the rural community of Carbondale, weakening slightly to high-end EF3 strength but continuing to cause major damage.

Past Barnsley, the tornado crossed over another CSX freight line and I-69 before passing through an unpopulated, swampy area, where large trees were snapped or uprooted, and damage was rated EF2.

Some of the worst damage in Bremen occurred along Bethlehem Cemetery Road, where a row of four homes were completely swept away with only their foundations remaining, and debris was scattered and wind-rowed long distances through fields across the street.

[62] After the tornado left Bremen, some weakening occurred; it crossed US 431 south of Stroud, where some houses and mobile homes were damaged or destroyed, and hundreds of large trees were snapped and denuded.

[31] The tornado entered a flatter area to the west of Hartford and began to intensify once more; large, steel, power poles were bent over or broken along Johnson School Road, earning an EF3 rating.

[31][63] The last area of EF3-strength damage occurred along KY 69 and Utley Drive northeast of Hartford, where a poorly anchored, block-foundation home was swept away and destroyed, and other houses nearby lost their roofs and exterior walls.

The tornado downed power lines as it crossed KY 79 at EF0 strength, damaged a large boat-storage facility and scattered sheet metal debris across the runway of a small airport 300 yards (270 m) to the northeast.

[31] The tornado reached a peak width of 2,600 yards (2,400 m) and was on the ground for nearly three hours, tracking 165.6 miles (266.5 km) from Woodland Mills to Rough River Dam State Resort Park.

Describing the damage as "almost beyond belief", Biden announcement the disaster declaration had been amended to have the federal government pay the entire cost of debris removal, and overtime for law enforcement and emergency personnel for the next month.

[79] By May 2022, the Tennessee Valley Authority and the environmental nonprofit Living Lands and Waters, using excavators, barges, and volunteers, had removed 1.2 million pounds (540 metric tons) of tornado debris from Kentucky Lake.

[80][81][82] Governor Beshear's administration created the Team Western Kentucky Tornado Relief Fund, which received approximately 150,000 individual donations for a total of $52 million.

[83] Disaster-relief and humanitarian groups such as the American Red Cross, The Salvation Army, and World Vision collected donations and provided aid after the tornado.

That money, along with $6.3 million in state transportation funding and $200,000 from other federal grants, was to be used to reconstruct around 2.5 miles (4.0 km) of high-traffic thoroughfares in the Graves County seat.

[87] In February 2023, Mayfield mayor Kathy O'Nan visited Louisville, Mississippi, which was struck by a devastating EF4 tornado in 2014, to tour the damage path and speak with city leaders about the rebuilding process and funding sources.

[91] On December 17, it was reported multiple workers at the candle factory filed a lawsuit against Mayfield Consumer Products in state court, seeking compensation and punitive damages.