Rain, Snow, and WIND

We’re in it now.  A messy mix of just about everything, as this storm wants to be an overachiever in all areas:  rain, snow, and wind.  Already reports of 5-6″ in northern Worcester County and NW Middlesex County, and the snow continues to fall.  However, as we’ve mentioned several times, what you’re seeing out your window all depends on where you’re located.  For Boston – points south, it’s still all rain… but that could change before this system is done with us.

By the way, we can’t thank you enough for all of your reports.  As chief meteorologist Jeremy Reiner said earlier tonight, “the radar imagery is great, but your eyes and reports are invaluable to us.”  We NEED your reports!  The radar tells us where it THINKS that rain/snow line is, but it may not be exactly in that location.  Plus, that line keeps wobbling back and forth, with the heaviest snow just on the other side of the “wall.”  So again, thank you for keeping us posted on social media and via email tonight.  We appreciate you!  and pics like this:

In a lot of our live shots tonight on #7News (Milford, Lunenburg, etc) the snow looks like what we would call “Christmas snow:” big, fat flakes falling peacefully to the ground.  That’s because the wind component hasn’t kicked in yet for most of us.  We’re in for it, though… just you wait.  The snow/rain will wrap up for most of us by 9-10pm tonight, even ending as a quick burst of snow inside 128 and along the North Shore…. even in downtown Boston.  However, we’re still not expecting much (if any more than a coating) of accumulation, because the ground isn’t cold enough.

This storm system is rapidly intensifying, and maybe you’ve heard us use the term “bombogenesis” before.  A storm system is “bombing out” when it drops at least 24mb in 24 hours.  This system, being the over-achiever it appears to be, will drop about 30-35mb in 24 hours.  It certainly is “bombing out” and it’s doing so right on top of us.  As the central pressure drops, the pressure gradient tightens ups and the winds will increase.  Eventually, winds will switch around to blast out of the WSW – and gusts could get to 35-45mph for many of us.  For Cape Ann, Cape Cod, the South Shore and the islands, winds could gust up to 60mph.  Scattered power outages are a good likelihood with wind like this… and also in the areas that got the wet/heavy snow today.

While the storm is gone by the time we wake up Friday morning, there still is a bit of concern for the morning commute.  With temps expected to drop down to 32° or just below in most spots, we’ll need to be cautious and aware that there could be ice.  Tomorrow is partly cloudy – very different from today – and still fairly breezy/windy.

Holiday weekend?  Yes, we’re almost done with 2016… New Year’s Eve should be dry, but there may be some light rain/snow showers on that drive home after we ring in 2017.  It’s a light mix into the early hours of the morning Sunday, but still something to be aware of.

That’s all for now!  Keep sending reports!  – Breezy