Rain Of Terror: Showers To Return To SF, Beginning Tonight

Rain Of Terror: Showers To Return To SF, Beginning TonightPhoto: Thomas Hawk/Flickr
Allie Pape
Published on February 15, 2017

It's been a gloriously dry six days in San Francisco, but the city's brief rain-free streak is soon to come to an end. Reports are showing that SF is in for another lashing of rain beginning tomorrow—and there's not a dry day in the next week's forecast. 

Forecasts call for the rain to commence overnight tonight, with the heaviest showers expected in the morning hours. It's likely to continue to rain steadily all day Friday and into Saturday morning, and then again on Sunday morning and in the afternoon. 

As SFGate explains, Northern California has fallen victim to a series of weather systems called atmospheric rivers. These plumes of vapor collect tropical moisture in the Pacific Ocean, then drench the coast upon making landfall. Typically, San Francisco sees one or two of these systems per winter, but this week's will be the fifth. 

If you feel like you've been drowning in rain, it's not your imagination. According to Golden Gate Weather Services, it rained on more than half the days in January 2017, totaling 9.42 inches (compared to 6.94 inches in January 2016). Last February saw only 4 days of rain; if the forecast holds, we're set to double that total for 2017. 

The wet weather has taken its toll on the city, particularly on trees that have already suffered years of drought, and now can't stand up to the onslaught of frequent storms. Parks and fields are so muddied in places that they've had to be blocked off to protect the grass, and small businesses have been hurting for lack of customers (with the exception of the ones that sell outerwear). 

As always, we're asking our readers to be our eyes and ears on the ground for all the tree collapses, massive power outages, BART and Muni meltdowns, and other crucial neighborhood news that ensues in the wake of persistent storms. Text us your tips and photos at (415) 200-3233. 

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