Freezing temperatures force homeless indoors; rain to follow

After weeks of dry weather, KTVU's weather team has forecast some big changes for the Bay Area starting with a freeze warning late Monday night and later in the week much of the Bay Area should see rain.

As temperatures drop to freezing levels Monday, the weather is sending some of the Bay Area's most vulnerable residents indoors.

Inside a cold weather shelter at the Sunnyvale Armory it was a cozy 68 degrees.

Hal Boots, a homeless man, said he came to the shelter to escape the freezing temperatures.

"You can't sleep out there in a sleeping bag, it's just too cold," he said.

There are some 2,000 beds for the homeless in the South Bay, but a census shows there are about 7,000 people living on the streets in Santa Clara County.

So Monday night, Pastor Scott Wagers, of the Community Homeless Alliance Ministry,  tried to help people unwilling to come inside. He handed out extra blankets to the homeless.

"It gets hella cold," said Keith Williams, a homeless man. "Let me tell you, if you ain't got no blankets or propane heat to keep you warm, you definitely gonna get cold."

Williams has two tropical birds and that's why he doesn't go to a shelter.

"They got set rules," he said. "Everybody's got rules. Out here we don't have no rules. It's every man for themselves."

Wagers said it's more than being cold,  it becomes a matter of life or death.

"People will die out here," he said. "On nights like (Monday) people will contract flu or something and they can't get well… living out here, you can't get well."

Rain is expected to follow the cold snap starting Wednesday or Thursday and could last through Sunday, when the San Francisco 49ers will host the New York Giants in the NFC Championship game at Candlestick Park.

Those planning to attend the game may want to bring rain gear. "Cool with chances of showers I'd say would be the best bet right now," said National Weather Service forecaster Bob Benjamin of Sunday.

He said showers will begin in the North Bay on Wednesday afternoon and spread to the rest of the Bay Area later in the day and early Thursday.

There are no major storms expected, but Benjamin said there will be gusty winds and periods of heavy rainfall, with possible flooding of small creeks and streams.

Parts of the Bay Area could see several inches of precipitation over the next week, he said.

"We'll start our trek back toward normalcy with respect to rain for the season," he said.

Benjamin said the system will also bring "decent snow" to the Sierras.