Bay Area rain showers could last into Wednesday morning

Falling temperatures, slight chance of rain mark the end of November

The National Weather Service predicted overnight rain in the Bay Area on Tuesday, first in the North Bay and then in other areas.

Though rain totals were expected to be light and limited to late Tuesday and early Wednesday, a low-pressure system was expected to bring as much as a 75 percent chance of rain to most of the Bay Area into Wednesday morning.

A NWS bulletin issued early Tuesday morning referred to the possible showers as “beneficial rainfall.”

“We have enough rain to really limit fire potential across the region, but not so much rain that it causes flooding concerns,” said NWS meteorologist Dial Hoang.

The low-pressure system was expected to reach San Francisco and the Peninsula between 9 p.m. and 12 a.m. on Tuesday evening. Rain was not expected in the East and South Bays until after 4 a.m.

Parts of the coastal Peninsula and North Bay could receive up to a half-inch of rain, while totals elsewhere were not expected to exceed a quarter-inch.

“We had a slight increase in expected rainfall totals,” Hoang told the media. “For the most part, the Bay Area should generally stay around one-tenth to one-half of an inch.”

While wet roads were expected for Wednesday morning commuters, flood concerns on the coasts had dissipated over the weekend.

As the storm systems pass through the region on Wednesday, a mostly sunny day with high temperatures in the mid-to-low 60s was forecast. Additional storm systems were on their way from the Pacific Northwest in time for the weekend, but early forecasts indicated that only light rain would fall in the Bay Area.

“As of right now the most rain we’re expecting will be in the areas of the North Bay coastal ranges,” Hoang told reporters. “And even then, right now we’re expecting not too much rain for the extended period, covering up to around one-quarter of an inch.”