San Diego County found itself under a rare tornado warning during a historic storm that has already caused havoc in California.
The National Weather Service issued the warning for inland parts of the county, including El Cajon, La Mesa, and Santee.
The alert was part of the broader concern as a deadly storm unleashed hundreds of mudslides in Southern California, triggering multiple flood warnings.
The record-setting storm system had promised up to 3 inches of rain in San Diego and Los Angeles, intensifying fears of flooding and mudslides due to the heavily saturated ground.
This is a view of the possible tornado just east of San Diego earlier this afternoon that prompted a tornado warning for El Cajon.
The warning has since been discontinued but showers and storms remain possible through the day pic.twitter.com/9AtyUDsJpR
— WeatherNation (@WeatherNation) February 6, 2024
During the warning, NWS warned of flash flooding near streams, creeks, and other waterways, posing threats to low-lying urban areas, highways, streets, and underpasses.
As the county braced for isolated thunderstorms and continued rainfall through Wednesday, authorities reported at least one casualty due to flooding — a migrant attempting to cross the swollen Tijuana River.
