The opener in a three-system series of rain storms kicked off with a punch a bit less powerful than National Weather Service forecasters said they expected — call it a glancing jab.
The more exciting action for the region is likely to come next.
“We did see the first system really covering more of the North Bay than anything, and we did get some rain there,” meteorologist Roger Gass said Tuesday afternoon. “But it wasn’t anything heavy.”
The weather service said one-third of an inch of rain fell in Santa Rosa, the wettest spot in the region. Two-hundredths of an inch fell in Vallejo, but that was as far south as any significant rain traveled, according to the weather service.
Next comes the middle system of the three. It is expected to bring a wider, heavier path of rain, beginning Wednesday and lingering into Thursday, Gass said.
After that storm cell departs, the third system will roll into the region on Friday.
“This next one is looking to be more plentiful in terms of rain than the one that just went through,” Gass said. “That one is probably going to be most impactful on the coastal ranges and less so in the interior valley. The Friday storm is probably on track to be the wettest overall.”
The rain — what little rain there has been so far — has been caused by a low-pressure system spinning offshore that is expected to stay around for a few days.
Significant amounts of rainfall were anticipated by forecasters as they looked at the weather models last week. Forecasters predicted the start of the rain this week would kick off around midnight Tuesday, but by 7 a.m., only trace amounts had fallen in the East Bay and South Bay.
At mid-morning, most of the Bay Area saw blue skies with some light wispy clouds in certain areas.
By sometime Saturday or early Sunday, those clear skies will have returned and will settle in for a bit, Gass said. A “substantial break” in stormy weather is expected and could last through Thanksgiving, he said.
Until then, forecasters said residents should be prepared for rain, even if not quite so much.
“I know this was kind of a dynamic forecast with a lot of uncertainty associated with it a few days out,” NWS meteorologist Sarah McCorkle said early Tuesday. “Now we have a better idea of how much rain we’re going to get and it does look like we’re trending a bit downwards.”
