At 1:12 p.m. on March 1, 2007, one of Alabama's most destructive tornadoes slammed into the city of Enterprise, about 90 miles south of Montgomery. Large sections of the town were severely damaged before the EF4 storm with winds of 170 mph hit Enterprise High School during the middle of the school day. Eight students were killed and 50 more were taken to area hospitals. Another local resident died in her home bringing the death toll to nine.

Gov. Bob Riley mobilized the Alabama National Guard to help with the disaster and a dusk-to-dawn curfew was put into place. President George W. Bush visited the community on March 3, declaring Coffee County a disaster area. After an aerial survey of the tornado damage from Marine One, the president stopped at the Enterprise High School to view the destruction.

"Out of the devastation can come hope and a better tomorrow," Bush said, standing with his arm around a student who had a tear running down her face. "Our thoughts, of course, go out to the students who perished. We thank God for the hundreds who lived."

Few were waiting for the government to step in. Even as the president was a few hundred yards away promising help, neighbors with chainsaws were cutting up fallen trees for friends. Church groups and other volunteer agencies had already swarmed into town to help clear debris and offer hope amid the devastation.

The Red Cross survey showed 239 homes were destroyed, 374 had major damage and 529 sustained minor damage. The tornado followed a path 10 miles long and estimated to be 500 yards wide. Damage estimates were set at more than $300 million.

The nearby Hillcrest Elementary School was also severely damaged by the storm. In the days after the tornado there was an investigation into whether school should have been dismissed earlier in the day. The National Weather Service concluded that the death toll could have been much higher had students be dispersed throughout the community.

It was also determined that the appropriate safety precautions were taken as the tornado approached and students were in the safest part of the building, but guidelines were developed for new school construction requiring hardened enhanced safe rooms to prevent future disasters.

On May 29, 2008, first lady Laura Bush delivered the commencement address at Enterprise High School's graduation exercises. Four of eight students who died in the March 2007 tornado at the high school would have graduated with the Class of 2008. The senior class gave her a gift of a picture of the school with a piece of brick from the old building.

A total of 56 tornadoes, including three EF3 and three EF4 tornadoes, were confirmed during this outbreak between Feb. 28 and March 2, 2007, resulting in a total of 20 deaths throughout the central and southern United States. Total damages were estimated at over $580 million ranking it as the fourth most costly tornado outbreak in U.S. history.