5 years pass since EF-3 tornado hit Prattville | News

PRATTVILLE, AL (WSFA) - Sunday marked 5 years since the city of Prattville was shaken by a large EF-3 tornado. WSFA 12 News Chief Meteorologist Rich Thomas, looking back, said he remembered sitting in the weather center on a Sunday afternoon with meteorologist Rob Hatchell as they covered tornadic supercells.

"We took particular nterest in an intense cell entering Lowndes County, and we noted that within the hour this cell would affect Prattville," Thomas explained.

At 2:31 p.m. the National Weather Service issued the tornado warning. At 2:58 p.m., the large EF-3 tornado, a monster more than 4 football fields wide, touched down and began tearing through heavily populated areas of the city.

The tornado's 155 mph winds caused significant damage, ultimately injuring 50 people.

Somehow, even as the tornado moved through neighborhoods on a Sunday afternoon, there wasn't a single fatality.