Snow falling at the rate of a half-inch to an inch per hour will continue into the evening, especially across eastern Massachusetts.
Snow will end in western MA by midnight and by approximately 7 a.m. tomorrow in eastern Massachusetts.
Total accumulations of 14 to 18 inches across Boston, the North Shore, the South Shore, Worcester Hills, and the eastern slopes of the Berkshires are expected, with locally higher amounts of 20-24 inches possible in Boston, Metro West, the North Shore, and the South Shore.
Some areas of the South Shore have already received nearly 2 feet of snow due to a strong coastal front convergence. Much of the rest of the state will receive between 8-14 inches, except for the south coast which will receive 4-8 inches, the Upper Cape which will receive 3-5 inches, and the Outer Cape and Islands which will receive 1-3 inches.
The National Weather Service is monitoring the potential for another snow event Thursday into Friday. In addition, frigid air, probably the coldest so far this season, is likely to move into New England toward the end of the week, followed by the potential for another coastal/ocean storm this weekend. More details on these events will follow once this storm ends.
The National Weather Service provided the following update at 10:00 a.m. this morning, indicating that areas on Boston’s south shore are like to receive total snowfall amounts exceeding 24 inches:
“We have updated our storm total snowfall map to increase to just over 2 feet in Boston's South Shore...with 2 feet expected in Boston (from Saturday through late tonight). The south shore has been getting hammered with heavy snow bands all night and this morning. This is due to strong coastal front convergence (north wind at Boston; east-northeast wind at Plymouth with convergence in between). Mesoscale models indicate quite a bit more falling in that same region today. As of a couple of hours ago, we have received reliable reports of 19.8 inches in North Weymouth, MA and 18.5 inches in Norwell, MA.”
Snow will fall at rates up to 1 inches per hour at times, particularly in eastern Massachusetts, and visibility may be low to near-zero due to winds and the light texture of the snow. Drifting snow may also be a problem at times, particularly near the coast.
There have been three partial building collapses (one in Bridgewater, one in Quincy, one in Rockport) related to heavy snow accumulation.
· Large amounts of heavy snow on roofs may lead to structural weaknesses or collapses in some cases. Safety and preparedness tips for dealing with snow on roofs may be found on MEMA’s website at: http://www.mass.gov/eopss/agencies/mema/ready-massachusetts/roof-collapse-and-storm-dain-safety-information.html
