Brown landscape for the holiday season? Get ready. A warm storm system is about to pounce on us. In addition to heavy rain, the temperatures will really get out of hand. How do 60s sound for Christmas Day?
Santa was quoted as saying, “This is an outrage!”
At first blush, you might think his job is made easier by the lack of snow, but read on.
This isn’t a single deluge of water heading into New England. We’ll be treated to three waves of rain: one tonight/tomorrow AM, another Wednesday afternoon and the grand finale – complete with some thunder/lightning – predawn Christmas Day.
Now that’s a rainy trifecta. And in fact, the heaviest rain will be right when Santa is doing his rounds. (Don’t worry kids, he’s a seasoned vet in ANY weather.) It could be argued, however, that Santa has been on easy street for a few years now. Look back on the temperatures over the past few years:
We will challenge the record of 65 (set back in 1889) for the day. My forecast is for 62°! We’ll see how that works out.
Now for the timeline…
Nuisance showers will persist through the night, then a steadier rain takes over for the first part of the day. Leftover showers will finish a raw, cool afternoon across Southern New England.
Wave two arrives later on Christmas Eve (day). This rain will be accompanied by a gustier wind, and last throughout the night. The final leg of rain will hit predawn on Christmas with rapid clearing after Christmas morning. If you have older kids, and are able to sleep in (can’t imagine), you may find yourself with a bright sky and temperatures in the 50s.
Winds become an issue late on Christmas eve and Christmas Day. Gusts could top 40-50mph in parts of SE Mass and 30-40 for the remainder of Southern New England. In addition, the high tide Christmas morning may cause some minor flooding thanks to that south/southwest wind piling up water along the coast.
And this isn’t the only surge of warmth we’ll see in this spell. Another batch of very mild air will come – sans rain – on Saturday amidst a mostly sunny sky. 60 is again within reach. It’s not until Sunday night that winter returns with the possibility of rain turning to snow late night.
Now, go forth and enjoy the holiday season. Be safe and go easy on the sauce.
(Cranberry, of course.)
Pete