Bay Area Is Still Waiting for Snow Flakes

It is looking very promising for some low snowfall this Saturday

Bay Area-natives are taking a trip down memory lane this week with all this talk that sea level snow is possible Friday and into Saturday.

Back in 1976, there was a dumping on a weekday afternoon pretty much everywhere in the Bay Area.  If you lived here then, you probably have a photo like the one in this article from Santa Clara University.

Schools opened their doors for extra recess and folks spilled out of office buildings to see the white stuff fall. We'd love to see any photos you are have of that event. Send them here.

The potential for a repeat is looking good, according to the NBC Bay Area weather department. 

The chance of a snow hitting low-lying parts of the Bay Saturday morning is promising, according to Chief Meteorologist Jeff Ranieri:

  • San Francisco 74 percent
  • Livermore 70 percent
  • San Jose 68 percent
  • Napa 60 percent

Snowfall has everything to do with elevation, so we thought we'd give you those numbers as well: 

  • Livermore 480 feet
  • Los Gatos 390 feet
  • Danville 368
  • San Martin 281
  • San Jose 82 feet
  • San Francisco City Hall 52 feet
  • Twin Peaks (in SF) 800 feet

The forecasters say its all about timing. As of Thursday morning, the cold front sped up with an expected arrival Thursday night.

NBC Bay Area Meteorologist Christina Loren said snow was already falling by Thursday morning at the 3,500 foot level.

She added that the system could also stall and that would keep snow in the Bay Area forecast throughout early Saturday when temperatures across the area are projected to be near freezing.

If precipitation is still coming down Saturday morning, in conjunction with the cold temperatures, snow flurries and wet snow flakes are a possibility near sea level.

Beyond the snow forecast, this weekend is going to be wet and bitter cold. Temperatures are expected to get progressively colder throughout the weekend with the potential for record breaking cold on Sunday.  

Both the East and North Bay Municipal Utility Districts are warning people that it will be cold enough to burst pipes. The best way to avoid that is to wrap water lines with old towels or special foam that  can be purchased at a local hardware store.

Below is a video clip from Bob Redell who recently revisited a San Jose woman who has kept a snowball from a snow storm 35 years ago.

 Bay City News contributed to this report

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