(KRON) – As heavy rain lashed the Bay Area on Monday, one location on the San Mateo County coast sustained damage from winds that reached nearly 100 mph, the National Weather Service confirmed Thursday. A survey team was sent to the area this week to investigate whether a tornado had formed over the area.
NWS surveyors were investigating damaged property on a parcel of land south of Año Nuevo State Park in Pescadero. According to weather data, the maximum thunderstorm wind speed was estimated at 95 mph during the windy event that lasted between 4:23 p.m. and 4:32 p.m.
Wind damage extended from the coast to about three-quarters of a mile inland. Some of the property damage noted in the NWS report included “tearing off the hoop house siding, structural damage to two hoop houses, moving a large water tank a quarter mile, and cutting down fairly large diameter coastal cypress trees.”
NWS officials concluded from their survey that the damage found was consistent with straight-line winds. There was no indication of damage caused by tornado activity.
Straight winds, as the name suggests, are thunderstorms that have no rotation, according to meteorological officials. Damage from this type of wind event is more common than damage from tornadoes. Straight-line winds can be confused with tornadoes because of their loud sound with wind speeds exceeding 75 mph and the severe damage they can cause.
In December 2024, a confirmed tornado in nearby Scotts Valley downed power poles, overturned vehicles, and injured at least five people.