A major storm continued to wallop much of Southern California on Thursday morning, bringing evacuation warnings, fears of mudslides and heavy mountain snow.

More than 100 million people in the U.S. are in the path of an expected massive March storm starting Friday. More than 100 million people in the U.S. will be in the path of an intense March storm starting Friday as the sprawling multi-day system threatens fires, blizzards, tornadoes, and flooding as it tracks eastward across the Great Plains.

The forecast comes days after an expansive storm similarly trekked across the U.S. last week, unloading snow in the northern Plains and bringing tornadoes and wildfires to the South. At least five storm-related deaths in Nebraska and Mississippi were tied to that storm.

The tornado, creating gusts of up 85 mph, left a trail 80 yards wide and a mile long, damaging homes, plowing over trees, taking down power lines and rupturing water pipes, authorities said. It hit a mile west of the 605 Freeway.

Forecasters said tornadoes, damaging winds and hail up to baseball-size were likely, with the greatest risk in eastern Missouri, much of Illinois and portions of Iowa, Kentucky, T