Quick Hitting Heavy Snows Paralyze Thursday Rush Hour

More Storminess On the Way This Weekend

Downtown Boston traffic yesterday afternoon was much like it was in Lowell - gridlocked. Image courtesy WBZ 4

Snowfall totals were about 1-3 inches higher than I predicted Wednesday afternoon. Not too bad, considering most other predictions at the time called for 2"-4" in Lowell.....
Nothing like a little snow to get us in the holiday spirit!Image courtesy WBZ 4
Sunday's storm looks to be a coastal hugger - much like the December 1st storm that brought us about 4 " of snow, sleet, and freezing rain. The tracks will be extremely similar, cutting very close to Long Island and The Cape. This means we will likely change to a wintry mix of snow, sleet, and freezing rain for this storm, keeping accumulations down.

WINTER WALLOP WACKS MASSACHUSETTS!

Ahh, nothing like a little alliteration to start the blog off. Yesterday afternoon, conditions went from mostly cloudy and cold to heavy snow in about 1 hour. Snowfall rates of 1"-2" an hour were common across the Bay State for several hours yesterday, bringing hefty accumulations to much of Southern New England, and creating a traffic nightmare across the state.

The jackpot was in southern Massachusetts and east-central Connecticut, were many locations received right around a foot of dry, fluffy snow. A sleet mixture held down accumulations along the immediate south coast.

Lowell received right around 8 inches of the white stuff, making for one heck of a commute home yesterday afternoon. Downtown was a mess, and it took me 15 minutes just to get 1/4 mile from campus, thanks to some gridlocked stoplights. Intersections across the state were backed up for miles in some cases, with normally 15 minute commutes taking up to 5 HOURS in some cases! Highways were at a standstill, and plows were rather ineffective sitting in the traffic jams.

People have been criticizing statewide response to the storm, claiming that roads were inadequately treated, and that schools and businesses should have closed earlier. Many students were stuck on buses for hours yesterday trying to get home. Read up on it here: http://www.thebostonchannel.com/news/14852919/detail.html

My future advice - don't wait until the snow starts to head on out. By then, it's often too late......

That being said, we will be watching a potent, juicy storm heading up the Atlantic seaboard this weekend. It will tapping into some tropical moisture and will be winding up as it tracks north toward New England.

However, this system looks right now to be a coastal hugger, meaning warmer air aloft will likely work into the region. The bottom line - this storm probably won't be all snow. Instead, we will likely see snow to start, changing to a mess of heavy snow, sleet, freezing rain, and possibly rain.

The impending Nor'Easter looks to take a very similar path to the 12.1.07 storm, which skirted just south of Massachusetts and the Cape - although this storm will be stronger when it passes us by. My best guess now is a good 3"-6" of snow in Lowell before things change over to an icy mess. As always, this storm is still a ways away, and details will be in much better focus as we get closer to the event. With these borderline situations with regards to precipitation type, a slight shift in storm track can make a huge difference in snowfall totals. Basically, things could change. I recommend that you continue to monitor the situation. If the storm decides to take a more easterly track, we will remain socked in with colder air for a longer period of the storm. This will increase our chances of heavy accumulations. Further to our north, Ski Country stands to get a a slug of a foot or more of snow. Stay tuned for updates.

And now here's your forecast:

Today: Mostly cloudy and milder. High near 38.

Tonight: Decreasing cloudiness. Temperatures drop to near 15 by early morning.

Saturday: Clear to start, clouds thicken up later in the day. Light snow showers possible by afternoon. Colder, with highs near 25.

Saturday Night: Cloudy with light snow likely late. Low 20.

Sunday: A mess! Snow, sleet, freezing rain, and rain. Precipitation could be heavy at times, especially the first part of the day. High 35. Winds becoming gusty from the east at up to 35 mph.

Extended outlook

Monday: Sunny and cold. High 28.

Tuesday: Continued sunny and cold. Highs in the upper 20s.

For WUML Lowell 91.5 FM this is WUML weather director and UMass Lowell student meteorologist John Webster. Have a great weekend everyone!