UPDATES: Bay Area Christmas storm brings downed trees, power outages, road closures

The tornado alert issued by the National Weather Service for 1 p.m. on Thursday has been cancelled.

The alert covered parts of Santa Cruz County and included the cities of Santa Cruz, Capitola, and the unincorporated areas of Scotts Valley and Paradise Park.

The weather service said a tornado was indicated on radar earlier in the day.

The agency is asking members of the public to report damage, including submitting photos and location information, to the National Weather Service office in Monterey at weather.gov/mtr or tag the @NWSBayArea on social media.

Hundreds of flights at San Francisco International Airport faced delays Thursday as strong winds and winter weather disrupted holiday travel.

The Federal Aviation Administration issued a ground delay program under the United States Domestic Program, limiting arrivals to 25 flights per hour and later increasing the rate to 28 flights per hour from Thursday into Friday. The program affects all domestic flights and select routes from Canada.

A ground delay program requires aircraft to delay their departures to and from SFO to keep air traffic at safe levels during adverse weather conditions.

Nearly 200 flights had already been delayed as of Christmas Day morning, according to flight-tracking website FlightAware, while only a small number had been canceled. Strong winds at the Bay Area's busiest airport continued to impact operations, where more than 900 flights were scheduled to arrive and depart throughout the day.

Data from aircraft-tracking website FlightRadar24 showed the average delay was about 24 minutes as of 11 a.m., but the FAA advisory warned delays could worsen later in the day. Average delays were expected to approach two hours, with maximum delays reaching up to three hours.

Nearby Bay Area airports in Oakland and San Jose remained largely unaffected by the winter weather.

Passengers are encouraged to check with their airlines for the latest flight information.

The National Weather Service is advising Bay Area residents to expect hazardous surf along the coast Thursday and potentially through Friday, with breaking waves of 20 feet and strong rip currents along south- and west-facing beaches from Sonoma County to Monterey Bay.

A Beach Hazards Statement remains in effect for Thursday and extended into Friday morning for the North Bay, San Francisco, the Peninsula, Santa Cruz County, and Monterey counties. Forecasters say the large shore break and rip currents will persist, making conditions hazardous for swimmers and beachgoers, with a slight chance of thunderstorms forecasted as well.

Clouds and rain also continue to blanket the North Bay and interior East Bay, as the latest in a series of storms makes its way into the region. Strong winds and poor visibility are expected along the coast, alongside sand being kicked up by gusts.

Forecasters and emergency responders said adverse weather conditions can make it difficult to for water rescues.

Residents are urged to use caution near the water, and check the latest forecasts at weather.gov/bayarea.

A portion of southbound Highway 101 in San Jose is closed Thursday morning due to an overturned gasoline big rig truck.

Officials say there was an incident between the big rig truck towing two trailers of gasoline and a pickup truck at 5:30 a.m. near the Hellyer Ave. exit.

They say weather was a contributing factor with the crash with flooding on the road. The driver of the big rig was taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

CHP says the pickup truck driver slowed for flooding, and the tanker truck driver behind was going at an unsafe speed and did not see the pickup truck slow down. The tanker truck driver overcorrected to avoid the tanker truck and then overturned.

The overturned tanker is leaking gasoline onto the road, which is now contaminated with a mixture of water and gasoline. Crews need to pump the water and gas and get the big rig uprighted before they are able to reopen the road.

CHP estimates the road won't be reopened until 4 or 5 p.m. Thursday.

Officials say there have been numerous crashes due to weather and urge drivers to take caution.