TIMELINE: Strong level 3 storm Wednesday will bring heavy rain with flood watch for entire Bay Area

Tuesday, January 30, 2024
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Wednesday's atmospheric river has been upgraded to a level 3 on the ABC7 Exclusive Storm Impact Scale.

UPDATE: Strong level 3 storm to bring heavy rain, strong winds with flood watch for Bay Area

The worst impacts including flooding and downed trees will come Wednesday evening after sunset.
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ABC7 News meteorologist Drew Tuma has a breakdown of what to expect.

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TIMELINE



  • 5/6/7 a.m.: Expecting an uneventful AM rush. Perhaps light showers in the North Bay. Breezy along the coast.

  • 11 a.m.: Winds start to ramp up. Light to Moderate rain in the North Bay. Isolated showers elsewhere.

  • 4/5/6 p.m.: Getting into the worst of the storm. Winds gusting 40-60 mph. Rain becoming widespread, heavy at times. Probably start hearing storm damage reports.

  • 11 p.m.: Worst wind is over, but rain is still heavy in areas. Likely hearing reports of flooding and trees down.




RAINFALL



  • Heaviest rain will fall in the evening. Highest impacts will be seen after sunset.

  • Expecting 4"-7" in our coastal hills, 3"-5" in the North Bay, 1"-2" for the rest of the Bay Area.

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  • Soil is saturated and runoff will occur quickly. Roads, smaller streams and creeks will see flooding.

  • Shallow landslides will likely happen (think mud on roads and not necessarily massive boulders).

  • Currently, none of our rivers have a high chance of flooding.

  • Flood Watch in effect for the entire Bay Area





WIND



  • Gusts up to 45 mph possible in the afternoon and evening.

  • In the Santa Cruz Mountains we could see gusts up to 60 mph.

  • Saturated soil is like oatmeal. Trees have no stable surface and will come down easily.

  • Power outages are likely in areas, especially in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

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  • Wind advisories and warnings are in effect




SNOW



  • Winter Storm Watch for the Sierra starting Wednesday morning

  • 1-2 feet of snow above 6,000ft

  • 3 feet of snow on highest peaks




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