Mother Mourns Son Who Died at Tornado-Hit Amazon Warehouse: ‘At Least I Got to Say I Love You’

An Illinois mother mourns the loss of her son after he and five others died when a tornado rampaged through the Amazon warehouse in Edwardsville, Illinois, on Friday.

Rescue efforts came to an end at the Amazon warehouse Sunday night, as attention now shifts to recovery and cleanup KSDK reports.

“At this point, we have transitioned to search and recovery,” Edwardsville Fire Chief James Whiteford said at a Saturday news conference, per WFTV. “We don’t expect that anyone could be surviving at this point.”

The Madison County Coroner has identified the six victims who perished in the facility, per WFTV.

• Deandre S. Morrow, 28, of St. Louis, MO

• Kevin D. Dickey, 62, of Carlyle, IL

• Clayton Lynn Cope, 29, of Alton, IL

• Etheria S. Hebb, 34, of St. Louis, MO

• Larry E. Virden, 46, of Collinsville, IL

• Austin J. McEwen, 26, of Edwardsville, IL

Police told KSDK there were no reports of additional missing persons. 

Victim Clayton Cope’s mother Carla says she was able to speak to her son one last time.

“At least I got to say I love you,” Carla Cope told KSDK. 

As the EF-3 tornado approached the area where Clayton was working, she called to warn him. 

“We told him it looked like the storm was heading that way and that he needed to get to shelter,” said Carla.

He told his mom he would but said he first needed to notify his coworkers. 

“He was trained in the Navy,” Carla told KSDK. “That’s what they do, and in his job, he would’ve put himself out there no matter what.”

After the twister had passed, Clayton did not respond to her phone calls. She knew something was terribly wrong and headed to the warehouse. 

“We were lucky enough to get there before they blocked the way, before no one could get up there,” Carla told KDSK. “We parked and walked close, as close as we could, to the building. We could see all the damage on the building, and it was on the south end where he would’ve been.”

The factory has a storm shelter, but it is unknown how many workers were able to make it inside. 

An Amazon spokesperson indicated alarms went off 11 minutes before the storm hit, according to KDSK. 

“There were announcements in the building and then our leadership team were going around moving people in as well,” said Amazon spokesperson Kelly Nantel.

“Even if they had a bunker that they could’ve gotten to, the building is large and it takes time to get there,” Carla told KSDK. 

Amazon has promised to assist each family through the tragedy. 

“We’re all in the same boat,” Carla told KSDK. “There’s no amount of sympathy that can make you feel any better. It’s just going to take time.”