--- title: "Bizarrely, Los Angeles County Just Got Hit By a Tornado" description: "After weeks of nearly-non-stop rain, a freaking tornado was filmed as it ripped through Los Angeles County, damaging people and property in its wake." date: "2023-03-22" modified: "2023-03-23" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/los-angeles-possible-tornado" categories: - "Science & Energy" tags: - "extreme weather" - "los angeles" - "natural disasters" - "the digest" --- # Bizarrely, Los Angeles County Just Got Hit By a Tornado ![After weeks of nearly-non-stop rain, a freaking tornado was filmed as it ripped through Los Angeles County, damaging people and property in its wake.]() *\Image: @njtehcherchian via Twitter / Futurism\* ## Do The Cyclone After weeks of nearly-non-stop rain, a freaking *tornado* was filmed as it ripped through Los Angeles County, damaging people and property in its wake. As [LA's *ABC7* reports](), the tornado claimed the roof of businesses in the East LA County town of Montebello, damaging several cars and injuring at least one person. https://twitter.com/NBCLA/status/1638629821621358592 Thus far, there isn't much more information about the injured person or damaged property, but the Angelenos who saw it are freaked out regardless. "It felt like somebody was hitting the wall with iron bars," one witness [told the local *NBC* affiliate](). "I saw trash flying around, trees falling down. Even our wrought iron gate is torn up." Tornados are rare in California, but not quite so much as you'd think, with the state typically [getting around 11 per year](). This latest one, it eventually emerged, was the strongest to hit LA County since 1983. ## Landspout and About Interviewed [by the *Los Angeles Times*](), National Weather Service meteorologist Kristen Stewart — a [different one](), presumably — said that, per videos she'd viewed, the act of nature may end up being classified as a "landspout," which she described as a weaker type of tornado than the kind depicted in films like 1996's "Twister." https://twitter.com/NWSLosAngeles/status/1638586058786111488 The tornado comes after weeks of rain and thunderstorms that have plagued the City of Angels for what seems like [the entire month of March](), which caused [widespread flooding]() but also, on the brighter side, [ended the water shortage]() for some of California's residents in the wake of its historic drought. The previous night, the [National Weather Service did indeed warn]() that a thunderstorm capable of causing a tornado could be hitting LA and Ventura Counties — a warning that now seems, perhaps, well-warranted. *Updated with additional details.* **More on freak weather:** [*Officials Say It's Fine That Millions of Fish Suddenly Died in This River*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()