The “atmospheric river” that passed through Northern California on Wednesday delivered on its billing as the biggest storm so far this season and dropped about 1 inch of rain in most Bay Area cities and as much as 5 inches in higher elevations.
The storm caused mudslides, power outages and toppled trees, including one that killed a man in Oakland.
Although the brunt of the storm has cleared the Bay Area, showers and isolated thunderstorms will continue Thursday, according to the National Weather Service.
By Thursday morning at 4:15, 24-hour rainfall totals from around the Bay Area included 1.10 inches in San Francisco, 1.0 inch in San Jose and .92 inches in Oakland. The wettest locations were Three Peaks in Big Sur at 5.75 inches and the rural town of Venado in the North Bay, which recorded 5.68 inches of rain.
The storm also delivered strong winds that toppled trees and power lines and heavy rains that triggered flash-flood advisories and mudslides that snarled traffic in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
With the atmospheric river now to our southeast, just how much rain did we receive? For more locations, check out https://t.co/CMl2U4NtpI#CAwx #CAstorm pic.twitter.com/9bJNQLM9Wx
— NWS Bay Area (@NWSBayArea) January 17, 2019
Along with heavy rain, strong winds were felt across the Bay Area, including a gusts reaching 98 mph at Bigrock Ridge in Marin County, according to the weather service.
Authorities reported that a man was killed Wednesday by a downed tree in Oakland on CalTrans-administered state property just off Interstate 580 near 14th Avenue, according to the California Highway Patrol.
More than 25,000 PG&E customers had lost power as of Wednesday evening. Caltrans extended a shut down of Highway 1 in Big Sur from Mud Creek north past Paul’s Slide and up to Fuller’s Point near the Deetjen’s Big Sur Inn. Rough water on San Francisco Bay canceled ferries. And a mudslide on Highway 17 shutdown southbound traffic in the Santa Cruz Mountains, just south the Glenwood Cutoff.
The storm was blanketing the Sierra Nevada with a blizzard that prompted avalanche warnings and was expected to dump several feet feet of snow in the mountains. The National Weather Service warned of “potentially life threatening conditions” above 7,000 feet in elevation, with winds up to 110 mph on ridge tops and high avalanche danger, and urged motorists to avoid mountain roads.
I-80 UPDATE: R-2 chain controls EB/WB from Drum to Truckee.
ALL big rigs being turned. We’ll reevaluate around noon and reopen if weather conditions do not worsen. pic.twitter.com/kONMD3hdBC
— Caltrans District 3 (@CaltransDist3) January 17, 2019
Stephanie Myers, spokeswoman for Northstar Ski Resort, reported 4 feet of new snow since Tuesday. At 8 a.m., many ski resorts in the Sierra Nevada reportedly received 1 to 2 feet of snow in the past 24 hours.
By mid-afternoon Wednesday, there were reports of the San Francisco Civic Center BART station closing for about an hour due to flooding, and scattered reports of downed trees in Saratoga, Los Gatos, Novato, Lafayette and near Half Moon Bay.
Thursday, the weather service issued a coastal floor advisory for low-lying areas along the immediate coast, bay front, marshes and sloughs, which may experience minor flooding.
Dry weather is expected Friday and Saturday followed by another chance of light rain Sunday, according to the weather service. Dry weather with mild temperatures are expected next week, the weather service said.