Warning signs near a flooded area in the San Francisco Bay. Photo / Getty Images
The US Pacific coast's most ferocious storm in years has moved south, bringing hurricane force winds and heavy downpours to southern California one day after claiming two lives in the Northwest.
News reports on Friday said a homeless man and a young boy were killed by falling trees in the
state of Oregon.
Severe flooding, mudslides and high winds - some gusting up to 225km/h - wreaked havoc as the unusually powerful storm bore down the California coastline, buffeting Los Angeles and San Diego.
The Los Angeles Times newspaper said the storm trapped some residents inside their homes and cars, and led officials to issue mass evacuations of some areas, which also were hit by widespread power outages.
The National Weather Service said among southern California's hardest hit areas were foothills denuded of vegetation after being scorched by wildfires over the past few years, and which now are particularly prone to mudslides.
