The first in a series of storm systems aimed at the Bay Area arrived Friday morning, slamming into the North Bay with high winds that felled trees and impacting traffic at San Francisco International Airport on the busiest travel day of the holiday season.

According to the National Weather Service, the rain moving south from the North Bay Friday morning will continue to fall through Sunday, making for a soggy weekend throughout the Bay Area.

The wild weather hit the North Bay the hardest.

A massive 100-foot-tall fir tree crashed into an Inverness carport just as homeowner Michelle Pelton was about to get into her car to drop off gifts for a local charity.

She got the scare of her life.

"I was standing right underneath it right over here," said Pelton. "Some limbs hit us. I feel very grateful that were ok and we're alive."

In Petaluma, a power pole on G Street couldn't stand up to heavy winds, falling over and blocking the roadway.

A high wind advisory was in effect until 10 a.m. in the Bay Area Friday morning, with southern winds up to 20 mph making travel on bridges throughout the region tricky.

Shortly before 2 p.m. Friday afternoon a severe traffic alert was issued for flooding on CA-1.

All lanes are closed in both directions in the area of Tomales Petaluma Road in Marin County due to flooding. Motorists are advised to expect delays and to avoid the area. There is no estimated time of opening.

A high surf advisory is in effect until 4 p.m. Saturday.

At San Francisco International Airport, airport duty manager Lily Wang said 50 flights -- 25 arrivals and 25 departures -- were canceled Friday morning.

Other flights are seeing delays of up to an hour and a half, Wang said.

She said there are many delays into Midwest and East Coast airports, with longer delays for flights arriving at Newark International Airport.

An estimated 130,000 passengers are expected to pass through SFO Friday, according to airport officials.

Oakland International Airport and Mineta International Airport in San Jose were tracking on-time flights in and out of the airport Friday morning with no cancellations, according to airport operations staff.

The airport was expected to see increased activity Friday before the Christmas holiday, according to officials.

Drivers were being warned to watch out for slippery roads if heading to the Sierra this holiday weekend.

A winter storm warning went into effect at noon Friday and is expected to last through Sunday.

The rain drenching the Bay area means dumping snow in the mountains, which is good news for Sierra ski resorts and snow sports enthusiasts.

Wind and snow are expected Friday at elevations above 4,500 feet.

While Caltrans said there weren't chains restrictions on the mountain passes as of 12 p.m. Friday, that was expected to change as the storm moves east.