http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-tornado-winds-storm-20141212-story.html

TORNADO TOUCHES DOWN IN SOUTH LOS ANGELES, DAMAGING 5 HOMES

'The whole building was shaking,' South L.A. resident says after tornado touches down

The National Weather Service confirmed Friday [December 12] that a tornado touched down in South Los Angeles during the heavy rain storm. The tornado hopscotched over a 10-block span, ripping off a roof and damaging at least five homes, officials said.

“We’re going to call it a small tornado,” said National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Boldt, who relied on radar data, video footage from witnesses and reports of property damage to diagnose the rare weather pattern. “The damage was sporadic. That’s typical of a tornado,” Boldt added.

Watch: Waterspout touches down off Newport Beach
A waterspout touches down at Crystal Cove Beach in Newport Beach, Calif., on Dec. 12 after heavy rains. Video provided by Mark Tarzian of Newport Beach, Calif.

About 9:20 a.m., the tornado traveled from at least Vermont and Gage avenues to 57th and Figueroa streets, Boldt said.

The wind tore the roof off a duplex on the 6300 block of Vermont Avenue, damaging five homes and several cars, said Los Angeles Fire Department spokeswoman Katherine Main.

Deborah LaVergne, 56, was preparing turkey sandwiches in the kitchen of the Garr Learning Center in South Los Angeles when she looked out the window. Outside, a black trash can swirled 30 feet in the air.

“The whole building was shaking,” LaVergne said. “It sounded like a freight train.”