SAN FRANCISCO — Damaging hurricane-force wind, surging surf and heavy rain from a powerful “atmospheric river” pounded California on Thursday, knocking out power to tens of thousands, causing flooding, and contributing to the deaths of at least two people, including a child whose home was hit by a falling tree.
Although late fall and winter tornadoes are rare for much of the rest of the country, their frequency increases in the South, especially near the Gulf Coast.