Northern California and the Pacific Northwest are bracing for what is expected to be a powerful storm, with heavy rain and winds set to pummel the region and potentially cause power outages and flash floods.
The Weather Prediction Center issued excessive rainfall risks beginning Tuesday and lasting through Friday as the strongest atmospheric river - long plumes of moisture stretching far over the Pacific Ocean - that California and the Pacific Northwest has seen this season bears down on the region. The storm system has intensified so quickly that it is considered a " bomb cyclone ," explained Richard Bann, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center.
The areas that could see particularly severe rainfall as the large plume of moisture heads toward land will likely stretch from the south of Portland, Oregon, to the north of the San Francisco area, he explained.
"Be aware of the risk of flash flooding at lower elevations and winter storms at higher elevations. This is going to be an impactful event," he said.
In northern California, flood and high wind watches go into effect Tuesday, with up to 8 inches 20 centimeters of rain predicted for parts of the San Francisco Bay Area, North Coast and Sacramento Valley.
