Tornadoes in California are a rarity but not unprecedented.
Here is the short list of tornado warnings issued by the NWS office in San Francisco since 1989:
Composite map showing all 9 tornado warnings since 1986.
Each tornado warning and the radar composite for each event:
December 14, 2024
The warning went out before 6am Saturday and ended at 6:15am. Damage assessments from the NWS said the tornado had peak winds of 90 mph
A team from the National Weather Service San Francisco Bay Area conducted a storm survey in Scotts Valley. The team identified a swath of tornadic damage that began near the intersection of Mount Hermon Rd and Lockewood Ln and continued southeast along Mount Hermon Rd until just short of Kings Village Rd. A wide range of damage was observed including: downed trees, downed power poles, trees stripped of branches, numerous overturned vehicles, and damaged street signs. Based on these damage indicators the survey team assessed a maximum wind speed of 90 mph, which is a weak EF1 tornado.
March 2, 2024
March 18, 2011
January 20, 2010
January 23, 2010
September 18, 1989
