Close Call Indeed

Posted by Chris Lambert

Not a whole lot changes in the weather department over the next 36hrs... and that means the occasional sprinkle or flurry with overnight temps just below freezing and day time highs just above 40.

The story of the week will be the storm coming through the Northern Plains and heading right for the mid-Atlantic.  There's no question that this will be a powerful storm, the question is, how close to New England does it move?

Regardless of exact track of this storm, this is what I expect:  

With a strong high to our north, and deepening low to our south, there's no way to avoid a strengthening onshore wind.

An east to northeast wind increases Wednesday with just a few rain showers scattered about.  A few snow showers likely mixes in outside 495.  As the wind continues to increase, especially along the coast, seas build and minor beach erosion and minor coastal flooding are possible by the early evening high tide Wednesday. 

Winds continue to increase out of the northeast Wednesday night and Thursday, adding to the potential of beach erosion and coastal flooding during the 6:45AM high tide cycle and 7:30PM high tide cycle.  The PM high tide has a higher likelihood of flooding. 

Winds Wednesday night and Thursday gusts 40-50mph at the coast, with the highest gusts across SE Mass, especially the Cape and Islands. A cold rain and even some wet snow settles in, with at least a couple inches of wet snow outside 495 across the higher terrain of Rhode Island and southern Worcester County.

What the track will dictate:

The amount of rain and snow we get Wednesday night and Thursday.  A closer track with heavier precip would have the ability to pull down colder air, bring the rain/snow line closer to the coast, and provide much higher snow totals, especially in the hilly terrain. (This is the most uncertain part of the set-up right now)

Despite having strong winds anyway, even stronger winds would occur if the track of the low is a bit closer.  60+mph gusts would be possible across the Cape.

Also, the track will dictate how long the storm lingers, and if we're still dealing with rain/snow showers, wind and coastal concerns Friday morning.

 Lots to watch, we'll keep you posted.

Like A Waterfall

Posted by Pete Bouchard

If you were caught in those 'cloudbursts' today, you had more than you could handle in the rain department. Torrents fell in a short amount of time - what we deem 'flash flooding' in the weather biz. Since it happens suddenly, the National Weather Service has adopted the acronym TADD:

Bam! Pow!

Posted by Jeremy Reiner

Bam. Pow! Those were some nasty storms last evening with some towns in metrowest & the city itself blasted with locally heavy rain, hail, lightning and strong wind gusts. A cool front is the culprit and that front will linger across the region again today. That means another round of some scattered showers & t-storms likely.

Thunderous Start to Workweek

Posted by Pete Bouchard

Heat and a bit of humidity fed a strong - and sometimes severe - line of thunderstorms today. By the time the dinner hour rolled around (6pm-ish), the storms had consolidated into a line. Everyone got a drink of water and a big drop in temperatures - some falling nearly 20 degrees in minutes!

Rear-view Mirror

Posted by Jeremy Reiner

As we exit our recent soggy pattern we do so with one more weather system capable of producing scattered showers & t-storms. This cool front is a slow mover (aren't we all on Monday mornings?!) up in northern New England right now. This slow moving front will settle into our part of the world very late this afternoon bringing a chance of some scattered t-storms between 4-pm. Until then you have a great day with mostly sunny skies along with temperatures in the low 80s. For some, a bit on the humid side for much of the day.