March 9th Update
Ol’ Man Winter is not going away quietly in Southeastern New England. There are two snow events in the forecast for the next five days, and when it’s not snowing, it will be bitterly cold. The first snow storm arrives late Thursday night and lasts through most of Friday afternoon. The best bet for more than 3″ of snow is south of a Warwick to Plymouth line. Those areas may see 3-6″ of snow, while 1-3″ of snow is likely in Northern RI and interior Southeastern Massachusetts.
Snow ends by sunset on Friday, and Arctic air returns for the weekend. The wind will gust over 30 mph Friday night into Saturday as the temperature plunges into the teens. Wind chills will be near zero early Saturday.
Expect sunshine, a gusty wind, and temps in the low 20s on Saturday. Single-digit wind chills are likely in the afternoon. The temperature will fall to the single digits to low teens Saturday night. Set your clocks ahead an hour before going to bed. Sunday will be bright, brisk, and very cold. It may not reach 30° on Sunday afternoon.
Monday will start with temps in the teens. It will reach the low 30s in the afternoon under mostly sunny skies. We’re tracking another storm for Tuesday into Wednesday. The potential exists for a significant late-winter snow storm. The track and intensity of the storm is uncertain, but the setup is ripe for a strong storm off Eastern Seaboard. At this point, the odds of more than 3″ of snow in RI and SE MA are around 50%, and that’s pretty high for a five-day forecast in mid-March!
At this rate, March will be a colder month than February was in Southeastern New England. While it’s unlikely because a late-month warm-up can turn the tables quickly, it gives you an idea of how mild February was.