Next round of rain to arrive in Bay Area Wednesday morning; High Surf Warning set for Thursday

While the outlook on Tuesday is cloudy and dry across the region, rain is forecast to return to the Bay Area on Wednesday with the arrival of the first of two storm systems.

The National Weather Service forecast for the greater San Francisco Bay Area calls for patchy fog covering most of the region Tuesday morning, with cloudy skies to hover in some areas at night.

A Coastal Flood Advisory is in effect in the North Bay Interior Valleys and San Francisco Bay Shoreline Counties through 1 p.m. Tuesday as minor coastal flooding is expected in the affected areas.

Meanwhile, the first rain system is expected to arrive Wednesday focusing on the North Bay, before another system on Friday impacts the entire region. 

The first system will arrive Wednesday morning, bringing moderate rains and strong winds as unsettled weather persists through Thursday morning. The second stronger system is projected to get to the Bay Area early Friday, providing another round of rain through Saturday morning.

Rain amounts of 0.5 to 1.5 inches will be possible in the North Bay and 0.5 inches or less will fall in the rest of the region during Wednesday's storm. On Friday, rainfall amounts are expected to be higher than Wednesday with lower elevations forecasted to receive 1-1.5 inches and higher elevations getting 2 or more inches.

While current models indicate the Bay Area should remain dry on New Year's Eve Sunday night, there is more rain projected in the first week of the new year.  

Daytime highs will be mostly in the 60s on the coast, and in the 50s and 60s around the bay and inland. Overnight lows should be mostly in the 40s in the region, with some areas around the bay dropping into the 50s.

Forecasters say there will be cloudy and generally dry conditions in the Bay Area for Tuesday with gradually strengthening winds. In coastal areas, wind gusts will be as high as 40 mph and on Friday could be as high as 35 mph. 

"Strong winds out of the south Wednesday are expected to gust from 25-30 mph in lower elevations, and potentially up to 45 mph at the coast and higher elevations," the weather service said.

Those winds will contribute to bigger waves starting early Thursday morning.

A High Surf Warning is expected to be raised over San Francisco County from 3 a.m. Thursday to 3 a.m. Friday as forecasters expect large breaking waves of 25 to 30 feet.

According to the NWS, the active pattern continues through the first week of the New Year.

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