LAPLATA, Md. (WUSA) - Ten years after an F-4 tornado struck La Plata,  the clean-up is still underway.

The town will be holding a major event Saturday to commemorate the 10th anniversary of that devastating tornado that flattened much of the town on April 28, 2002.

More than a thousand homes and businesses were damaged and destroyed by the F-4 tornado that cut a 24-mile path across Charles and Calvert counties that day. Three people died.

But rather than mourning the losses, La Plata residents are planning gatherings to celebrate the reconstruction and rehabilitation of much of the town. The event will coincide with the annual "Celebrate La Plata Day."

Festivities will include entertainment, displays of emergency vehicles and the kickoff of the town's concert series.

The town will recognize the time the tornado tore through town at 7:03 p.m. on Saturday, and a walking tour called "Memory Lane" will highlight local businesses before and after reconstruction.

One family, grateful for their rebuilt house and all that survived the tornado ( including their cat Dusty), is still finding bits and pieces of their past in odd places in and around their home. See the attached video for their story.