Historic First: Tornado Warning Shakes Downtown San Francisco Amid Fierce Storms

For the first time in recorded history, downtown San Francisco was placed under a tornado warning on Saturday as severe storms swept through the region, just a week after a tsunami warning triggered widespread alarm. The San Francisco Department of Emergency Management (SFDEM) confirmed the tornado threat had subsided by 6:14 a.m. PST, as the storm moved northeast of the city.

Earlier, SFDEM had urged residents to take immediate precautions, tweeting: “Take shelter now in a basement or an interior room on the lowest floor of a sturdy building. If you are outdoors, in a mobile home, or in a vehicle, move to the closest substantial shelter and protect yourself from debris.”

Simultaneously, the National Weather Service (NWS) issued a flood advisory and high wind warning, forecasting sustained winds of up to 40 mph in coastal areas. At San Francisco Airport, a wind gust of 72 knots (83 mph) was recorded as the storm passed. Videos from the scene captured intense winds shaking palm trees, with fallen trees and downed power lines scattered across the city. More than 10,000 residents were left without power on Saturday morning.

While California averages nine tornadoes annually, the NWS confirmed that no tornado warning had ever been issued for downtown San Francisco prior to this event.

This unprecedented weather came just a week after a tsunami warning rattled the region. On December 5, a 7.0-magnitude earthquake struck off the California coast, prompting warnings for nearly 5 million residents along the Northern California and Oregon coastlines. Although the warning was later canceled by the National Tsunami Warning Center, the earthquake’s magnitude—rare at just 15 such occurrences globally each year—caused many residents to evacuate as a precaution.

The earthquake’s epicenter was located in the Pacific Ocean south of Eureka, California, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Eureka, the largest coastal city between San Francisco and Portland, Oregon, is approximately 300 miles northwest of Sacramento.