A powerful late-winter storm is bearing down on Southern New England for the end of the workweek. The storm will bring heavy rain/snow, coastal flooding, and strong winds. The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Storm Watch for most of Southeastern New England. Their forecast calls for 6-10″ of snow in the watch area. That is higher than the Right Weather forecast for the same area, and it speaks to the difficulty associated with determining where the rain/snow line will be with this storm. Read the text below from the National Weather Service office in Taunton, MA.
...A COASTAL STORM WILL BRING THE POTENTIAL FOR HEAVY WET SNOW AND STRONG WINDS THURSDAY INTO FRIDAY... .A STRONG COASTAL STORM WILL SLOWLY PASS WELL SOUTHEAST OF THE BENCHMARK WED NIGHT INTO FRI. STRONG WINDS AND HEAVY WET SNOW WILL WRAP TO THE N OF THIS LOW...LIKELY AFFECTING PORTIONS OF EASTERN MASS...RI AND EXTREME EASTERN PORTIONS OF CT AND NH. THERE IS STILL SOME UNCERTAINTY...BUT CONFIDENCE GROWS THAT THIS STORM WILL HAVE A MODERATE TO HIGH IMPACT ON SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND. CTZ004-MAZ012-013-015>022-RIZ001>007-060500- /O.NEW.KBOX.WS.A.0006.130307T0600Z-130308T1200Z/ WINDHAM CT-SOUTHERN WORCESTER MA-WESTERN NORFOLK MA-SUFFOLK MA- EASTERN NORFOLK MA-NORTHERN BRISTOL MA-WESTERN PLYMOUTH MA- EASTERN PLYMOUTH MA-SOUTHERN BRISTOL MA-SOUTHERN PLYMOUTH MA- BARNSTABLE MA-NORTHWEST PROVIDENCE RI-SOUTHEAST PROVIDENCE RI- WESTERN KENT RI-EASTERN KENT RI-BRISTOL RI-WASHINGTON RI- NEWPORT RI- INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...PUTNAM...WILLIMANTIC...MILFORD... WORCESTER...FOXBORO...NORWOOD...BOSTON...QUINCY...TAUNTON... BROCKTON...PLYMOUTH...FALL RIVER...NEW BEDFORD...MATTAPOISETT... CHATHAM...FALMOUTH...PROVINCETOWN...FOSTER...SMITHFIELD... PROVIDENCE...WEST GREENWICH...WARWICK...BRISTOL...NARRAGANSETT... WESTERLY...NEWPORT 358 PM EST TUE MAR 5 2013 ...WINTER STORM WATCH IN EFFECT FROM LATE WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING... THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN TAUNTON HAS ISSUED A WINTER STORM WATCH...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM LATE WEDNESDAY NIGHT THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING. * LOCATIONS...WINDHAM COUNTY IN CONNECTICUT...ALL OF RHODE ISLAND AND SOUTHERN AND SOUTHEASTERN PORTIONS OF MASSACHUSETTS. THE HIGHEST CONFIDENCE IS IN THE PROVIDENCE TO BOSTON CORRIDOR. * HAZARD TYPES...HEAVY WET SNOW AND STRONG WINDS. * ACCUMULATIONS...SNOW ACCUMULATION OF 6 TO 10 INCHES. * TIMING...THIS WILL BE A LONG DURATION STORM...WITH SNOWS BECOMING HEAVIER EARLY THURSDAY MORNING INTO THE DAY THURSDAY. THE SNOW WILL GRADUALLY TAPER OFF BY THE MORNING FRIDAY. * IMPACTS...HEAVY WET SNOW AND STRONG WINDS WILL LEAD TO DIFFICULT DRIVING CONDITIONS AS WELL AS INCREASE THE LIKELIHOOD FOR POWER OUTAGES. * WINDS...NORTHEAST 20 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH...THE HIGHEST GUSTS WILL BE OVER SOUTH COASTAL LOCATIONS. * TEMPERATURES...IN THE LOWER 30S. * VISIBILITIES...IN HEAVIER BANDS OF SNOW...VISIBILITY MAY DIP TO A HALF MILE OR LESS AT TIMES. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... A WINTER STORM WATCH IS ISSUED FOR THE POTENTIAL OF ACCUMULATING SNOW OF 6 OR MORE INCHES IN A 12 HOUR PERIOD...OR 8 OR MORE INCHES IN A 24 HOUR PERIOD. ANYONE TRAVELING IN THE NEXT 24 TO 36 HOURS SHOULD MONITOR LATER FORECASTS AND BE PREPARED TO MODIFY TRAVEL PLANS SHOULD WINTER WEATHER DEVELOP. && $$
