Fast winds, up to 50 mph, could bring down trees and power lines in Bay Area during 12 hour window

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Hold on, Bay Area! Potentially damaging winds are on the way to many of our local neighborhoods, according to ABC7 News Meteorologist Mike Nicco.

LIVE: Track strength of winds in Bay Area

"Winds are already gusting at Wind Advisory levels from SFO to Mt. Diablo," said Nicco. "The fastest winds are still expected later today."

Nicco says fast wind speeds are going to spread across much of the region, except for the Santa Clara and East Bay valleys.

A Wind Advisory will be in effect for a 12 hour period, starting at 5 p.m. Wednesday until 5 a.m. Thursday.

"We could have gusts of up to 40 or 50 miles per hour, which could bring down some tree limbs," said Nicco. "Avoid parking under trees and power lines, secure outdoor objects, and be cautious crossing our bridges. You could get some nasty crosswinds that could push the car a little bit out of control."

RELATED: Watch your ABC7 AccuWeather forecast

If you are concerned about the strength of the wind, you are not alone.

"I know the fire threat is on your mind and it should be anytime we get fast winds like this," said Nicco.

The fire threat will elevate a little bit because of the winds.

"Starting at 2 p.m. until about 2:30 a.m. or 3 a.m. -- it will get very high across some of our peaks in the North Bay," explained Nicco. "But that's only because of the wind speed. We don't have the extremely dry air and we don't have the super-hot temperatures. So, in that sense -- this is going to be a heightened fire event, but it's not going to be a dangerous one. That's why there is no Fire Weather Watch or Red Flag Warning."

We get another push Thursday afternoon, but then the breezes taper and so does that heightened fire threat.