A tornado near a mall in central California has swept away cars, uprooted trees and sent several people to the hospital. In San Francisco, officials issued the first tornado warning.
Elsewhere, severe weather has battered parts of the US, with heavy snow in upstate New York, a major ice storm in Midwestern states and severe weather warnings around Lake Tahoe.
An ice storm that began Friday evening created choppy driving conditions across Iowa and eastern Nebraska on Friday and Saturday and prompted the temporary closure of Interstate 80 after numerous cars and trucks slid off the road. In upstate New York, more than 33 inches (84 cm) was reported near Orchard Park, which is often the landing point for lake-effect snow.
On Saturday, the tornado touched down around 1:40 p.m. near a shopping mall in Scotts Valley, California, about 70 miles (110 kilometers) south of San Francisco. The tornado overturned cars and downed trees and utility poles, the National Weather Service said. The Scotts Valley Police Department said several people were injured and taken to the hospital.
Motorists make their way along Interstate 380 in North Liberty, Iowa on Saturday, Dec. 14, 2024. (Gazette via AP)
In San Francisco, some trees fell on cars and roads and damaged roofs. The damage was caused by 80 mph (130 kph) straight-line winds, not a tornado, Weather Service meteorologist Dalton Behringer said Sunday.
Roger Gass, a meteorologist with the weather service’s office in Monterey, California, said the potential tornado warning in San Francisco was a first for the city, noting that an advanced warning didn’t go out until the last hurricane nearly 20 years ago.
“I guess there wasn’t a clear signature on the radar for a warning in 2005,” said Gass, who wasn’t there.
The fast-moving storm warned residents to take shelter, but few people in the area have basements.
Heavy snow fell at some Lake Tahoe ski resorts, and 112-mph (181-kph) wind gusts were recorded at Mammoth Mountain Resort, south of Yosemite National Park, according to the weather service’s office in Reno, Nevada. Up to 3 feet (91 cm) of snow was expected on the Sierra Nevada mountain peaks.
The weekend Tahoe Live Music Festival at Palisades Tahoe Ski Resort in California went ahead as planned despite a snowstorm on Saturday. Lil Wayne and Diplo were scheduled to perform Sunday, the festival’s website said. The resort reported 3.5 feet (1 meter) of snow since Friday. An avalanche warning was in effect for the area until at least Monday morning.
Interstate 80 was closed Saturday for an 80-mile (130-kilometer) stretch west of Reno from Applegate, California to the Nevada line. The California Highway Patrol reopened the road at noon to passenger vehicles with chains or four-wheel drive and snow tires.
At least one person has died due to severe weather in the Midwest. The Washington County Sheriff’s Office in Nebraska says a 57-year-old woman died when she lost control of her pickup truck and struck an oncoming truck on Highway 30 near Arlington. Another driver sustained minor injuries.
Businesses announced plans to open late Saturday as afternoon temperatures rose enough to melt ice in many places.
“Luckily some warm air is moving in behind it to make it temporary,” said meteorologist Dave Cousins of the National Weather Service’s office in Davenport, Iowa.
Tens of thousands of people lost power in western Washington state Saturday as the system delivered rain and wind, local news outlets reported.
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