Strong winds, rain to return to Bay Area

PACIFICA, Calif. - Prepare for the rain to return to the Bay Area on Wednesday afternoon, after taking a break for Christmas when family and friends gathered under dry skies. 

Strong winds with gusts up to 50 mph and big waves at the beach will accompany the rain, expected to hit later in the afternoon.

The National Weather Service has issued a high surf advisory for Thursday, when waves could break at up to 30 feet. 

Bill Rothrum of San Francisco, a surfer, said he won't be in the water during these dangerous times. 

"Anything over like 7 or 8 feet, and I'm just like, no," he said.  "And I think it’s supposed to be 35 feet at Ocean Beach. That’s more than I want to do. So yeah, I definitely take it very seriously." 

Pacific Gas & Electric officials said that they are on alert for the storm, especially in the North Bay and Sonoma regions, and crews will be responding to downed trees and outages as needed.

The storms should taper off by Thursday night, and re-appear late Friday and early Saturday morning. 

Temperatures on Wednesday will hover in the high 50s and 60s.