Rainfall returns to the Bay Area after a long January dry stretch. On Friday, the heaviest rain will stay in the North Bay, with light to moderate showers for the rest

Rain is returning this week to the Bay Area – and forecasters are expecting a “potentially major storm system."

The incoming storm is expected to bring significant rainfall across the region, with up to 5 inches predicted in higher elevations.

Rain is back in the Bay Area on Friday after three and a half weeks of dry weather, which has been one of the driest January's on record. Rain is light on Friday but intensifies on Saturday with a moderate-strength atmospheric river and we may see flooding on roads and on smaller streams and creeks.