Downtown San Francisco. Photo: 123rf
For the first time in recorded history, downtown San Francisco was issued a tornado warning as severe storms swept through the city, just one week after a tsunami warning triggered widespread panic in the region.
The San Francisco Department of Emergency Management confirmed the tornado threat ended around 3.14am NZT after the storm moved northeast of downtown.
"Take shelter now in a basement or an interior room on the lowest floor of a sturdy building. If you are outdoors, in a mobile, home, or in a vehicle, move to the closest substantial shelter and protect yourself from debris," SFDEM urged residents in an earlier tweet.
The National Weather Service (NWS) also issued a flood advisory and high wind warning, with sustained winds of up to 64km/h expected in areas along the coast. San Francisco Airport reported a wind gust of 72 knots (133km/h) at the time the storm passed by. Videos show extreme winds shaking palm trees in San Francisco and downed trees and power lines.
More than 10,000 people were without power in San Francisco as of Saturday morning.
A tornado occurred just before 2pm in Scotts Valley, California, roughly 108km south of San Francisco, according to the Bay Area arm of the National Weather Service.
"Based on video, photos, firsthand accounts, and radar signatures a tornado occurred 1.40pm," the agency said.
The Scotts Valley Police Department posted on its Facebook page asking drivers to avoid Mount Hermon Drive because multiple cars were thrown off the road near the Target store after the tornado passed through the area.
California averages nine tornadoes in a year. No tornado warnings had ever previously been recorded for downtown San Francisco, the NWS confirmed.
One week prior, a tsunami warning was issued for the San Francisco Bay area and nearly five million people along parts of the Northern California and Oregon coastlines after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck off the California coast on 5 December. A quake that strong is relatively rare, with officials reporting only about 15 around the world each year.
Coastal communities avoided potential disaster and the warning was canceled by the National Tsunami Warning Center after some residents fled their homes. Most significant off-coast quakes prompt such warnings, as experts have little time to determine the immediate risk, and the result of a tsunami could be disastrous.
The quake's epicentre was in the Pacific Ocean south of Eureka, California, the US Geological Survey said. Eureka is the largest coastal city between San Francisco and Portland, Oregon, and about 300 miles northwest of Sacramento.
- CNN
