SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – An atmospheric river is expected to drench the Bay Area on Tuesday, after what should be a dry Halloween for trick or treaters.
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"(The rain) will quickly spread across the Bay Area, mostly after the commute times, so the timing is good," National Weather Service meteorologist Rick Canepa told KCBS Radio.
He added that some Bay Area spots could receive up to a half inch of rain, with the wettest spots, as usual, in the North Bay and the higher elevations.
Ahead of that storm, dangerous and massive sneaker waves are predicted to develop on along Bay Area the coast on Monday, prompting the National Weather Service to warn of hazardous conditions.
Large breaking waves up to 19 feet are expected to threaten all northwest facing beaches from Point Reyes to Pacifica to Monterey Bay, mostly on Monday afternoon and evening.
The agency defines the sneaker waves as "potentially deadly waves that surge further up the beach than expected, overtaking the unaware."
"Basically, think of the wind far away as pushing up a bunch of water and then the longer it takes to reach us the more energy it can build," National Weather Service meteorologist Dalton Beringer told KCBS Radio.
He said for surfers in particular, it's not a matter of not going in the water, it’s knowing when those sneaker waves may show up, which requires watching the surf for as much as a half hour to time things out.
In addition, the energy from those sneakers waves does not dissipate once they break.
"Really what that causes is an extra run up of water so especially people who aren't out in the thirst, but they're along the beach, it's not the breaking that you have to worry about, it's the extra run up onto the beach caused by that breaking," Beringer explained.
Sneaker waves can generate enough energy to move large objects like logs and push up onto the beach 50 to 100 feet past the usual surfline.
"You know it’s not like you’re going to see a big rolling out of nowhere," Beginner said. "You'll notice the break, of course, when it happens, but leading up to that no you won't really see much."
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