Peak wind gusts by location
70-85 mph Nantucket
70-85 mph Cape Cod
60-75 mph Block Island
55-70 mph New Bedford
50-65 mph Newport
50-60 mph Boston
50-60 mph Providence
45-55 mph Northern RI
Storm Impacts
Travel will be treacherous from late Friday afternoon through at least mid-morning Saturday in RI. The poor travel conditions as a result of snow/wind will continue most of the day on the Eastern MA coast. Because of the huge snow totals, road crews may have a difficult time clearing even the main highways before Sunday morning. Airports in Boston and Warwick are likely to be shut down Friday night through at least midday Saturday.
- TV station snow forecast roundup
- Top 10 Southern New England snow storms
- National Weather Service issues Blizzard Warning
- Computer Model Trends and analysis by Fred Campagna
- Coastal flooding threat interactive map
- Winter storm preparedness tips
- Pro Update: Snow odds for Providence area
The snow storm that is bearing down on Southern New England may not be the biggest on record, but it has strong potential to be in a select group near the top of the list. Of course, the Blizzard of 1978 is widely regarded as the biggest Southern New England snow storm of the past 100 years, and it paralyzed the region for days when it dumped a widespread two to three feet of snow. The second storm on the list for Providence was not that long ago. The January 2005 Blizzard produced nearly two feet of snow, with hurricane force winds and drifts that were several feet high. Third on the Providence list of top 10 all-time snow storms was in January of 1996, with nearly two feet in Providence. After that, there is not a single storm that has dropped more than 20 inches on Providence since 1905.
