Nashville Tornadoes Destroy Popular Music Club, The Basement East

The deadly Nashville tornadoes, which claimed nine lives and destroyed more than 40 buildings, [...]

By Gayle Thompson

The deadly Nashville tornadoes, which claimed nine lives and destroyed more than 40 buildings, brought down one of the city's most popular music clubs, The Basement East. The venue sustained significant damage, although thankfully no one inside The Basement East at the time was injured.

According to multiple news outlets, those inside The Basement East made it to safety seconds before the tornado touched down, leaving all but one wall standing. Fortuitously, the wall that remains has the mural "I Believe in Nashville" painted on it.

Chris Young urged his fans and followers to seek shelter as the storms wreaked havoc on Music City.

Kelsea Ballerini also spoke out about the devastation on social media, admitting that she was devastated by the news of so much damage.

"Oh Nashville," Ballerini wrote. "Broken heart very sad morning. how do we start to help? point me in the right direction and let's start helping and healing."

In addition to Nashville, Mt. Juliet, located just outside of the Nashville city limits, was also hit.

"Our community has been greatly impacted by a tornado," Cpt. Tyler Chandler of the Mt. Juliet Police Department said, according to the Tennessean. "There are multiple homes damaged and multiple people injured. Our officers are in the early stages of this response and we continue to assess what is happening ... there are multiple homes damaged, multiple people injured, multiple people still trapped. We need your help."

"There are gas lines that are leaking, power lines that are on the ground, and multiple emergency responders are responding to those who are injured and trying to get them the help that they need," Chandler continued. "We appreciate your concern, your prayers. Continue to pray for our first responders and those that are injured and we will continue to keep you updated."

Due to the storm's damage, Metro Nashville schools are closed for the day. Super Tuesday voting will still be held today, with polls opening an hour late to give officials more time to clean up and survey the damage.

Photo Credit: Getty / Brett Carlsen

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