Monterey Co Weather Advisory 11-05-20 15:35 DC

Strong cold frontal passage on Friday to impact the Bay Area…

 

Thursday will bring one last day of warm and tranquil weather to the Bay area before a strong cold front arrives Friday and brings wind, showers, and much cooler weather this weekend.

 

Timing: Cold front reaches the North Bay early Friday morning then moves southward to the Central Coast by afternoon.

 

Temperatures: Afternoon highs on Friday will generally be in the upper 50s to lower 60s. This will represent about a 15-20 degree cooling trend from Thursday. Clouds and blustery northwest winds will make conditions feel colder for one of the coldest days since last spring. Temperatures in the hills will be even colder with highs only in the low to mid-50s.

 

Winds: Gusty northwest winds arrive early Friday morning as the front passes through. Wind gusts of 35 mph will be common with local gusts to 50 mph for the hills and favored pass locations such as the Altamont pass. Any temporary tents or outdoor structures could be toppled by strong winds. Drought and diseased trees will be prone to wind damage as well as fire weakened trees in the numerous burn scars throughout the region. For locations that don’t receive rainfall, any new fires could spread surprisingly fast, even though temperatures will be cool with high humidity the fuels remain very dry for places that don’t see rainfall with the frontal passage.

 

Precipitation: Only light showers are forecast Friday morning, mainly near the coast and hills. There may be a midday lull in precip before the core of the most unstable air arrives. Right now the best shower chances look to be from about San Francisco southward to the Central Coast for Friday night but all areas will have a threat for showers. Amounts on average of 0.10 where showers occur but local amounts of 0.20 possible for the higher terrain from Santa Cruz county southward to Monterey. Isolated thunderstorms will be possible as well with the best chance Friday evening into Saturday morning, though the best chances may remain over the ocean. A second system will bring another chance of showers late Saturday night into Sunday morning.