Rainy, Cold Christmas Weather Expected To Slam Bay Area

BAY AREA, CA — It may not be a white Christmas in the Bay Area this year, but it'll certainly be a wet one. Widespread rain showers will hit the Bay Area starting Tuesday evening, Christmas Eve, and are expected to continue into Christmas morning on Wednesday.

Most of the region was expected to stay dry Tuesday morning, according to the National Weather Service forecast. That will change into the evening and overnight, as a cold front accompanied by rainstorms will reach the Bay Area.

Thunderstorms are also possible overnight, according to the NWS.

The showers will keep moving inland through sunrise Christmas morning, then taper off by midday as the cold front moves east. Half an inch of rain may fall through midday Wednesday, the NWS expects, with even higher totals in harder-hit regions.

More rain is possible for the Central Coast Wednesday evening and into Thursday morning, especially in Monterey and San Benito counties. Snow is even possible Thursday, for elevations above 3,500 feet along the Central Coast.

The skies look likely to stay clear into the weekend, with nighttime temperatures dipping into the 30s and 40s. Then, believe it or not, another storm system may hit the region late Saturday or early Sunday, the NWS says.