What a day! And a Saturday to boot! Highs were about 20° above seasonal averages, the sun was out, and people were wandering around this wonderful city donning short-sleeved shirts! Another “spring tease” to add to the winter book, and another mild day to add to the month of January.
We do still have the rest of the weekend to get through before we turn the page to a significant coastal storm. So, let’s not just jump through Sunday… Tomorrow will be mild again, but not as mild as today and less sunshine. We’ll maybe squeeze out some peeks of sunshine early on, but it’s otherwise an overcast day. Highs will be between 40-50° with the mildest air along the South Coast. It’s only a 20% chance of flurries/sprinkles tomorrow, but there’s still a chance. It’s not enough to necessitate the mention of rain gear, but don’t be surprised if you see a few rain drops or flurries for a quick time. A breeze will build through the day, out of the NW around 15-20mph. If you’re heading to Gillette for the big game you’ll want to dress for temps in the upper 30s with a chilly breeze. #GOPATS!!!
Okay – now we need to get to the nitty-gritty. When we typically hear “nor’easter” around these parts, especially this time of year, we make that grocery list for milk, bread and eggs in anticipation for copious amounts of snow. However, we know today was very mild – and tomorrow is as well – so there’s just no cold air in place to make that snow. This “nor’easter” is bringing copious amounts of rain to most of us Monday into Tuesday. Though, far inland there will be a mix of snow and sleet. Maybe accounting for 1-3″ of “slop” up around Route 2 and for the Berkshires:
That’s when a flood watch will go into effect for most of E. Mass:
Rainfall totals by midday Tuesday will be a widespread 1-3″ and could even fall at 1″ of rain per hour at times! WET and WINDY! The definition of a “nor’easter” is a storm with a strong NE wind component. We certainly have that. Winds will be strongest Monday evening into the overnight and could gust between 60-70mph for the Cape and islands. That’s where a high wind warning will go into effect on Monday morning:
Seas will build to around 20 feet… this is a VERY dangerous storm for mariners. With the persistent NE wind, we would obviously have coastal concerns too. However, it’s a good thing that our astronomical tides are low at this point – and with the timing of all of this – we will likely dodge a bullet as far as coastal flooding concerns go. Still, minor coastal flooding, splash-over and beach erosion is still likely during the high tide Monday evening and to a lesser extent, Tuesday morning:
Again, timeline on all of this is Monday afternoon through Tuesday morning. We’ll keep you posted of any updates as we go along. Now, let’s focus on tomorrow first, shall we?! GO PATS!!