Two Years Later We Remember: Deadly EF-5 Tornado Tears Across Moore

Wednesday, May 20, 2015 marks two years since an EF-5 tornado hit the south side of the Oklahoma City metro, and especially, the city of Moore.

The storm killed 24 people, injured close to 400, and caused more than $2 billion in damage. Bob Mills SkyNews 9 flew over the affected areas and found homes and buildings that had been reduced to rubble.

5/20/2013 Related Story: Massive Tornado Kills At Least 24 In Moore, Hits Elementary Schools

Thousands of lives in the metro were changed forever when the EF-5 tornado touched down. It left a trail of destruction starting in Newcastle, then moved to south Oklahoma City and Moore. The tornado was on the ground for 40 minutes.

May 2013 Tornado Damage

The tornado destroyed Plaza Towers Elementary School and Briarwood Elementary School in Moore.

Seven victims killed in the tornado were third-grade students at Plaza Towers Elementary. Most of them died from mechanical asphyxia, or suffocation. In April, 2014, the parents of those seven children sat down with News 9's Amanda Taylor to share their stories. 

4/24/2014 Related Story: Parents Of Plaza Towers 7 Share Their Story

The Moore Medical Center was demolished after being destroyed in the tornado. Construction on a new hospital began in October, 2014.

9/22/2014 Related Story: Construction On New Moore Medical Center To Begin

The $29 million facility will be built on the same site where the former Moore Medical Center once stood.

News 9 meteorologists said the twister closely mimicked the path of the deadly tornado on May 3, 1999. That storm had the highest winds ever recorded near the earth's surface.

Following the disaster, donations poured in from across the country. During our continuous coverage on the tornado damage on May 20, 2013, many News 9 viewers lined up at our studios in Oklahoma City to drop off donations for those affected.