coast Tuesday afternoon caused at least one tornado, four waterspouts
and winds of up to 90 mph, according to the National Weather Service.
“We have everything going today,” said weather service spokesman
Officials are bracing for another big storm Wednesday, and officials announced the evacuations of more than 500 homes in
along the coast were hit hardest by the fast-moving storm, which
flooded streets, damaged homes, produced hail and ice and stranded cars
on
Witnesses reported seeing a tornado touch down in
Sheriff’s deputies were responding to reports that a tornado or waterspout had touched down near the
Landing Marina in Huntington Harbour. He said he was in the office with
his wife when they got a computer warning that a tornado warning had
been issued.
He said they watched out the window as the
“cyclone,” as Seaton described it, passed over their building and
touched down in the marina. It stayed there for a while before moving
down the marina, getting stronger.
At one point, Seaton said, it picked up a 40-foot
catamaran and twirled it several feet in the air. The catamaran dropped
back into the water on top of another boat.
There was damage to that catamaran as well as a small whaler.
“It was just amazing watching that thing dance up in
the air,” he said of the catamaran. “As quick as it came it was gone. I
can’t even imagine seeing a monster one because this thing seemed so
powerful,” Seaton said of the funnel cloud. “When it came, it was just
‘boom.’ It was just unbelievable.”
Heavy rains caused a roof to collapse at
Police said the company’s 115 employees evacuated the building. A woman
who answered the phone at the company said no one was injured.
Hundreds of vehicles were stuck on the 710 Freeway in
Tuesday afternoon in rain-caused floods, authorities said. Firefighters
tried to remove hundreds of vehicles that were floating in standing
water on a local freeway, said Long Beach Fire Department Battalion
Chief
Other rain-related flooding was reported throughout
The Los Angeles Police Department has called a tactical alert and is evacuating homes in
In
the beaches were mostly empty while waves surged, lightning struck and
winds reached gusts of 52 mph. The gusts topped 72 mph in
Piers along the
police closed the city’s nearly 2,000-foot wooden pier Tuesday morning
as a precaution; no damage was reported. But huge waves crashed near
beachfront homes. “We’re expecting some pretty big surf,” said Sgt.
Lifeguards also closed the
The National Weather Service issued an urban and small stream flood advisory for
A high surf advisory is in effect through Friday,
and the weather service has issued a coastal flood watch starting
tonight and extending through late Wednesday, saying very large surf
combined with strong wind is expected to push water into low-lying
areas during high tide.
The largest waves will appear Wednesday and Thursday, when breakers could reach as high as 25 feet.
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