"Supersoaker" storm to hit Northern Calif.

(CBS News) Northern California residents are bracing for more wet weather through the weekend, as forecasters predict that a growing storm system has the potential to cause widespread damage and bring up to 15 inches of rain to the region.

The so-called "supersoaker" is actually three storms combined, with the first hitting Wednesday, the second hitting Friday, and the third storm expected to hit late Saturday night into Sunday.

Another weather phenomenon is contributing to the possible impact of the storm: a narrow band of moisture that can cover thousands of miles, known as an "atmospheric river." In California, this "atmospheric river" is strengthening the storms as they make for the coast.

Sacramento-based meteorologist Laura Skirde told CBS News' Carter Evans that by the time the storm is finished, the capital could get more than two months worth of rainfall in just several days.

"Rain this time of year is common, it's beneficial, we need it. We just don't need it all at once," Skirde said.

Joe Malica, a spokesman for the PG&E utility company, said utility workers are trimming trees and taking precautions as the storm approached, but he remains concerned about the anticipated high winds.

"When you get this wind this early on in the season, a lot of the leaves are still on the trees ... it acts as sails and it can bring even healthy trees down into our power lines," Malica told CBS News.

There is also concern about the risk of flooding and mudslides, particularly in regions hit by last summer's wildfires and which now lack the trees and vegetation needed to bolster the ground.