Tornadoes are possible in California, NWS says. Here is where they can form (2024)
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(KTXL) — While tornadoes are not a regular occurrence in California, it is a weather phenomenon that can appear in the state, specifically in Northern California.
According to the National Weather Service, California averages around 11 tornadoes a year and they usually occur in the fall or spring.
The NWS also said that while tornadoes can occur throughout the state, they are more common in the northern half of the Central Valley.
The area where they can occur is from just north of Merced all the way to Redding, encompassing the greater Sacramento region, Chico, and other cities in Central California.
On Tuesday, the NWS confirmed that a tornado touched down near Galt near Highway 99 around 1:40 p.m.
A preliminary report showed that due to the tornado, a barn’s tin roof was blown off along with powerlines being affected. Law enforcement also said that the windows of a bus were blown out.
Tornadoes are rated based on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, which uses the tornado’s wind speeds and damage, according to weather.gov.
The NWS said that the tornado that occurred on Tuesday ranged between EF0-EF3.
Tornadoes develop from severe thunderstorms in warm, moist, unstable air along and ahead of cold fronts. Such thunderstorms also may generate large hail and damaging winds. When intense springtime storm systems produce large, persistent areas that support tornado development, major outbreaks can occur.
Inside thunderclouds, warm, humid air rises, while cool air falls--along with rain or hail. These conditions can cause spinning air currents inside the cloud. Although the spinning currents start out horizontal, they can turn vertical and drop down from the cloud--becoming a tornado.
Tornadoes are violently rotating columns of air, extending from a thunderstorm, which are in contact with the ground. Tornadoes develop when wind variations with height support rotation in the updraft.
But the city, sitting east of East Los Angeles and southwest of San Gabriel Valley, is not the only area to see a tornado in the state. In fact, there have been 469 tornadoes reported between 1951 and 2022, according to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
As a colloquial term there are no definitively set boundaries of Tornado Alley, but the area common to most definitions extends from Texas, through Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, South Dakota, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Arkansas, North Dakota, Montana, Ohio, and eastern portions of Colorado ...
Tornadoes have been documented in every U.S. state (not including the non-state territories of Guam, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and Puerto Rico) at least once since 1950, although some regions and states are hit by tornadoes far more than others.
On March 18, 1925, the deadliest single tornado in the history of the United States occurred. The enormous storm affected people in Missouri, Illinois and Indiana, hence the name. As a result, almost 700 people were killed and over 2,000 were injured.
If winds from the thunderstorm vary greatly in speed or direction, the updraft will begin to rotate. As the rotating updraft draws in more warm air from the moving thunderstorm, its rotation speed increases, and a funnel cloud begins to form. As the twister gains strength, the funnel becomes longer.
The spring weather patterns are expected to promote more severe weather in the classic Tornado Alley, which spans from Texas through Nebraska. Tornadoes could also spin up more frequently in California in 2024.
If the tornado appears to stay in the same place, growing larger or getting closer--but not moving either right or left--it is headed right at you. You must take shelter away from the car or get out of its way fast!
In the U.S., tornadoes are one of our most deadly natural disasters. Tornadoes are swirling air columns stretching from a cumuliform cloud to the ground. They typically occur within supercell thunderstorms, and they have the potential to be deadly because of the intense energy that is concentrated within a small area.
Since tornadoes are often spawned from thunderstorms, there is usually a heavy downpour of rain after the tornado passes, even though there may be no rain present during the actual tornado. Flooding is a very real possibility. There may also be damaging hail.
As far as height goes, tornadoes can grow on average between 1,640 and 4,921 feet (500 and 1,500 meters) tall. According to the FOX Forecast Center, this range includes the visible portion of the funnel from the ground up to the storm cloud to which the funnel connects.
What states don't have tornadoes? Alaska, Rhode Island, and Washington, D.C. rarely see tornadoes — they averaged zero tornadoes annually over the last 25 years, according to our analysis of NOAA data.
Los Angeles has a Minimal Wind Factor™, which means there is a very low likelihood that hurricane, tornado or severe storm winds will impact this area.
The safest place in the home is the interior part of a basem*nt. If there is no basem*nt, go to an inside room, without windows, on the lowest floor. This could be a center hallway, bathroom, or closet. For added protection, get under something sturdy such as a heavy table or workbench.
Introduction: My name is Fr. Dewey Fisher, I am a powerful, open, faithful, combative, spotless, faithful, fair person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
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