The strongest waves of a powerful winter storm reached Southern California overnight, bringing flash flood warnings, lowering snow levels and achieving a tornado potential.
“Storms produce very heavy rain bursts, with small h, gusts of wind, and perhaps even water spraying and small tornadoes throughout the day,” the National Weather Service said Thursday.
At Pico Rivera, viewers sent images of what was called a tornado that hit around 3:15am. “There’s a big pine tree that’s been uprooted and landed in a car.
KTLA has checked with the NWS to see if the tornado actually landed, but officials have not confirmed.
Viewer images show damage from a possible tornado at Pico Rivera on March 13, 2025. Viewer images show damage from a possible tornado at Pico Rivera on March 13, 2025.
The rain rate, which is expected to reach nearly an inch per hour, prompted an early flash flood warning in the Orange County airport burn scar area early Thursday morning.
Flood recommendations are in place in most parts of Southern California as well Thursday morning, according to the NWS.
The storm is expected to bring half and a half of the rain to Southland by the time the front comes out late Thursday morning. Approximately 3 inches should fall into the hilly and mountainous regions of Los Angeles County.
Regular showers and thunderstorms may continue, but shaky weather will continue into the afternoon, according to NWS.
(National Weather Service)
Thunderstorms led to heavy rains, allowing officials to warn “at least the flow of small debris, flooding roads and cities, and slipping rocks.”
Snow levels are as low as 2,500 feet, and Grapevine can accumulate snow on five highways.
Mountainous areas over 6,000 feet should show 1 to 2 feet of snow.
The storm also brings gusts of wind between 45 and 65 miles, with the most powerful gusts in the mountains. “Isolated fallen trees and power outages are possible,” the NWS said.
The area will see a short lull in action on Friday Thursday night, but another system will enter, with another quarter of rain falling south of Point Conception.
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