SECOND STORM SYSTEM WILL BRING RAIN THIS WEEKEND
Totals likely to range between half an inch and up to 3 inches in some areas
Drizzle arriving Friday provided a preview of light to moderate rain and colder temperatures that are forecast throughout the Bay Area this weekend, according to the National Weather Service.
Widespread showers moved into the central coast of the Bay Area early in the day due to a low-pressure system coming from the Gulf of Alaska. The prefrontal rain, associated with a warm front, was likely to pass by Friday evening, NWS meteorologist Rachel Kennedy said.
The rain, which is expected to carry into today in some areas, will give most lowland areas in the East Bay, South Bay and Central Coast between half an inch and 1 inch of rain, and the North Bay could get between 1.5 and 2 inches. The Santa Cruz Mountains were expected to receive as much as 3 inches of rain, though that number may only reach an inch and a half.
Thunderstorm chances also rose with the arrival of the storm Friday, though they were expected to decrease today. The main threat was likely to hover over coastal areas, and interior portions of the Bay Area were forecast have the lowest probabilities for thunderstorms.
Today, the chance of thunderstorms over the marine environment will decrease, and the likelihood in inland portions of the Bay Area was expected to stay the same.
The NWS also put out a wind advisory for much of the region, including the coastline from Marin and Sonoma counties south to Monterey, as well as hills in the East and South bays, lasting through 2 a.m. today.
Winds in those areas were expected to reach 20-30 mph, with gusts up to 45 mph. A high wind warning, with winds reaching 30-40 mph and gusts up to 65 mph, was in effect for the same time period for the Santa Lucia Mountain area and the Los Padres National Forest.
For those traveling to the Sierra Nevada, the National Weather Service put out a winter storm warning, predicting snow as heavy as 3 feet in higher elevations by Sunday evening.
The Bay Area's cold front will give way to colder temperatures throughout the weekend, Kennedy said. Throughout today and Sunday, the highs are forecast to remain in the upper 50s to lower 60s.
Next week, Kennedy said, high pressure would build again, with drier conditions starting Monday. The temperature in coastal areas will peak at mid- to upper 60s from Monday to Wednesday. Inland areas were forecast to receive a higher warming trend, wither temperatures reaching the lower 70s on Monday, mid-70s Tuesday and back to the lower 70s on Wednesday.