It won’t be a white Christmas, but it will certainly be a wet Christmas in the Bay Area this year.
Rain is anticipated to start in the region on Tuesday, and while not continuing unfettered for the rest of the week, there will be rain almost every day for the next seven days, according to the National Weather Service.
This means that the average expected rainfall isn't too high, about one to three inches throughout the Bay Area. Except for the North Bay, around the coastal region, where there will be up to six inches of rain, according to NWS Bay Area meteorologist Brooke Bingaman.
"This isn't a typical atmospheric river pattern," said Bingaman. "Normally, in an atmospheric river, you have this continuous tap into tropical moisture, and it almost acts like a fire hose, where it just keeps bringing rain, rain rain."
But this week’s wet system will provide more "intermittent, where we'll have waves of light to moderate rain moving in," she said.
Even if it's not going to be a typical atmospheric river, people should still be extra cautious this week, said Bingaman.
"Obviously, the number one concern is that this is a holiday week, so we know that there's going to be a lot more traffic on the road," she said.
With wet road conditions coupled with increased traffic, there's more of a risk for traffic accidents.
"So we want people to really be cautious and give themselves plenty of time when traveling on the road," said Bingaman.
There's also some concern for light flooding on the roadways, particularly near the on/off ramps, she said.
"We really want people to be cautious because nobody wants to get into an accident during the holiday week," she said.
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