Ophelia, now a tropical depression, brings wet and windy weekend to New England

Tropical Storm Ophelia made landfall shortly after 6 a.m. Saturday in North Carolina with near-hurricane-strength winds. Ophelia promises a weekend of windy conditions and heavy rain as it churns up the East Coast, with the storm moving north at about 13 mph (21 kph) as of Saturday morning. 

Ophelia is now a tropical depression, and all storm surge and tropical storm warnings have been discontinued, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The rain in New England will continue into Monday morning before gradually tapering off. Afterward, a drying trend will set in for the rest of the week as a large high-pressure system wind the battle and extends from Quebec into New England.

Saturday, the heaviest rainfall was expected over southeast Massachusetts, Cape Cod, and the Islands, while areas further north were predicted to experience lighter rain or stay mainly dry.

Some isolated thunderstorms are also possible over the Islands. Windy conditions with gusts of 25-35 mph are expected over the Islands and immediate south coast with the strongest winds this evening up to 50 mph near Nantucket.

Rain and drizzle will persist Saturday night, particularly over the Cape and Islands, but the intensity of rainfall will diminish as the low-level jet weakens. Sunday will bring another round of rain and showers as remnants of Ophelia move northward along the mid-Atlantic coast.

We’ll likely see a wider extent to the rainfall coverage with this second round that may also stretch up into New Hampshire and southern Maine.

Sunday night into early Monday will bring steady rain to southern New England, followed by a dry finish to Monday. During the early part of the week, this high-pressure system will bring October-like weather conditions, with daytime highs ranging from 60 to 65 degrees and nighttime lows in the 40s.

As the week progresses, the airmass will slowly warm, with temperatures approaching 70 degrees later in the week.