'Juicy' Weather? Santa Cruz County Bracing For Weekend Cold Front

SANTA CRUZ COUNTY, CA — As rain continues in Santa Cruz County, forecasters are eyeing a cold front that is expected to move into the region Friday.

Although the storm will have "less fire hose parked over the coast" than what the region saw over the holiday weekend, it will bring the possibility of moderate to heavy rain, especially over the mountains, according to the National Weather Service.

The Friday cold front that is forecast to last through Sunday "will not be as juicy" or as long as the past weekend's "Atmospheric River" event, but it could bring 2-3 inches of rain Friday through Sunday in the Santa Cruz Mountains, according to the NWS.

The passing front also has some instability associated with it, so a slight chance for thunder has been added to the forecast on Friday as well, according to the NWS.

This storm comes on the heels of the season's first storm. Its core approached the Central Coast Wednesday morning and NWS forecast that one or two thunderstorms may even be possible as it headed inland.

NWS wrote shortly before 4 a.m. Wednesday that the Santa Cruz Mountains and Monterey County were expected to see higher amounts of rainfall than other parts of the Bay Area region. Hours later at 8:30 a.m., NWS reported that a half-inch to an inch of rainfall hit eastern Santa Cruz County through the Santa Clara County hills since Tuesday around 8 p.m.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the storm had closed three roads in the county: Paulsen Road at Whiting Drive was closed due to flooding; Spring Valley Road between Water Rank and San Andreas Road was closed due to flooding; and the area near 900 Wallave Ave. was closed due to a downed tree and wires.

Next week is expected to bring drier weather.

See more on Wednesday morning's storm from NWS: