Massachusetts

Southeastern Massachusetts Could See 2 Feet of Snow

With blizzard warnings in place for several counties in eastern Massachusetts, a third nor’easter in two weeks is bearing down on New England and, like its two predecessors will have a unique and distinctive personality.

The first in the string of nor’easters brought severe coastal flooding. The second of our nor’easters delivered rain to heavy, wet snow with widespread, long-lasting power outages. This third nor’easter may bring some minor coastal flooding and scattered power outages, but will be defined by its high snow totals.

Blizzard warnings have been issued for much of coastal Massachusetts, including for Barnstable, Dukes, Plymouth, Essex and Norfolk counties. A blizzard warning means the storm could have winds of more than 35 mph and visibility for less than a quarter of a mile for a prolonged period of time.

After quiet daylight hours of sun fading behind clouds Monday, the evening’s onshore wind should deliver some flurries and light snow showers to eastern New England — not the main event and not impactful.

After midnight Monday into Tuesday predawn is when steady snow arrives, briefly mixed with rain on Cape Cod before changing over and falling heavily through the morning and midday, while expanding northeast throughout all of New England. Winds will pick up noticeably from the northeast Tuesday around sunrise, and crank through the afternoon in eastern Massachusetts and into the evening along the coasts of New Hampshire and Maine, resulting in bouts of blizzard conditions in Eastern Massachusetts and likely a blizzard for New Hampshire and Maine coastlines.

Multiple power outages are possible on the Upper Cape, where the snow will be pasty and the winds will gust over 50 mph, but for many, outages will be scattered, helped by a lighter snow consistency but hurt by damaged limbs from the last storm and a gusty northeast wind.

For most, snow won’t appreciably taper until evening, and some of Northern New England will continue snowing through Tuesday night into Wednesday with a widespread 12 to 18 inches east and lesser amounts west, except in mountains. Minor coastal flooding is possible mid-morning Tuesday in typically vulnerable spots.

Cool conditions prevail through the end of the week behind the storm with continuing snow bursts in the mountains, though the weekend will hasten to melt ahead of another possible storm early next week in the exclusive Early Warning Weather 10-day forecast.

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