(The Center Square) – A rare sight in California – a tornado – slammed a Pico Rivera neighborhood early Thursday during the state’s latest storm.
The tornado, which happened between 3 and 4 a.m., lasted two minutes and moved at 85 mph in the city in southeastern Los Angeles County, the National Weather Service said on X. That speed put it in the slowest category for a tornado, placing it at 0 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale.
The tornado was one-mile long and had a width of 80 yards.
“This was a small, weak and brief tornado, which uprooted a few trees, downed numerous large tree branches and damaged roofs,” the National Weather Service office in Oxnard reported. “In some cases, trees fell on residences and vehicles, causing additional damage.”
The biggest damage occurred around Glencannon Drive, the weather service said.
The tornado dissipated near the intersection of Interstate 605 and Whittier Boulevard.
Also early on Thursday, heavy rain caused mudslides that trapped people inside several vehicles on Soboda Road in San Jacinto, a city in Southern California’s Riverside County. The road between Chabela Drive and State/Gilman Springs Road was closed while road crews cleared the mudflow and vehicles from the road.
“Swift Water Rescue Team was able to walk out six patients who were all evaluated by paramedics on scene and released,” the Riverside County Fire Department reported on X. The mudslides were reported at 6 a.m.
Evacuation warnings and orders were issued before the storm’s arrival on Wednesday amid concerns about possible debris flow in the burn areas from the recent wildfires. There were flash flood warnings early Thursday in parts of Los Angeles, Ventura and Orange counties, but the heaviest rain was over by the afternoon.
