Fears of more floods – and possibly tornadoes – as another storm hits California

The latest in a series of wet winter storms gained strength in California early on Monday, with forecasters warning of possible flooding, hail, strong winds and even brief tornadoes as the system moves south over the next few days.

Gusts topped 30mph (48kph) in Oakland and San Jose as a mild cold front late on Saturday gave way to a more powerful storm on Sunday, according to the meteorologist Brayden Murdock with the National Weather Service office in San Francisco.

“The winds are here and getting stronger, and the rains will follow quickly,” he said on Sunday afternoon.

California’s central coast is at risk of “significant flooding”, with up to 5in (12cm) of rain predicted for many areas, according to the weather service. Isolated rain totals of 10in are possible in the Santa Lucia and Santa Ynez mountain ranges as the storm heads toward greater Los Angeles.

Thunderstorms in valleys around the state capital on Monday could bring “brief tornadoes, large amounts of small hail, heavy rain, lightning, and gusty winds”, the weather service in Sacramento warned on X.

Residents in the region, including Sacramento, Chico, Yuba City, Stockton and Modesto, “are advised to pay close attention to the weather”, the office said later in a separate statement.

Early on Monday, a man was rescued along a creek in El Dorado Hills, east of Sacramento. The man, who had been camping in the area, was trapped in a tree as flood waters rose, Dave Brady, the El Dorado Hills deputy fire chief, told KCRA-TV.

The latest storm is expected to move through quicker than the devastating atmospheric river that parked itself over southern California earlier in February, turning roads into rivers, causing hundreds of landslides and killing at least nine people.

“It’s not the ideal setup for an atmospheric river, but it does have some of the characteristics,” including a band of subtropical moisture bringing up the rear of the storm, Murdock said. “Otherwise, it’s just a cold front.”

But it’s a cold front strong enough to cause problems including flash flooding and power outages, forecasters said. Flood watches and warnings were issued in coastal and mountain areas up and down the state.

The weather service said rainfall would be widespread even in the mountains, and several feet of snow was possible at elevations above about 6,800ft (2,070 meters) across the Sierra Nevada. Motorists are urged to avoid mountain routes.

“Consider completing Sierra travel during the day Sunday, or rescheduling to later next week,” said the weather service office in Reno, Nevada. The office issued a backcountry avalanche watch for the greater Lake Tahoe area and the eastern Sierra in Inyo and Mono counties.

The California governor’s office of emergency services activated its operations center on Saturday and positioned personnel and equipment in areas most at risk.