[2019.12.01 530 PM] NWS Boston EM Briefing: Weather Hazards Tonight thru early Tuesday
Good evening everyone, Here is our latest thinking on the upcoming significant winter storm just beginning to affect Southern New England, continuing to do so through early Tuesday. *Watches/Warnings/Advisories:* 1) NEW: Winter Storm Warning expanded to include Western Essex, Southeast Middlesex and Eastern Hampshire counties in MA for this evening. *What we expect:* *Changes:* Increased snow and ice amounts. Stressing two rounds of heavy snow: tonight into overnight interior MA/northernmost CT, and Monday night into Tuesday eastern/northeast MA. Other than western and central MA where lighter snows are expected to continue, mostly rain is expected elsewhere through late afternoon Monday. *Tonight into early Monday* - Snow becomes heavy at times (1"/hour) shortly after onset and continues into the evening hours. - Precipitation changes to sleet and freezing rain in northern CT, RI, to a sleet/snow mix in northern MA, and to plain rain in southern RI and southeast MA for the overnight hours. - By daybreak Monday, snow/sleet accumulations of 6-8" possible in western and northern MA with approximately 4-6" in Springfield and interior Essex County, with 2-5" elsewhere (including MetroWest Boston), except less than an inch on Cape Cod/Islands and near the immediate coast in southeast MA and southern RI. - The snow will be very moisture-laden. This could make for compact snow but it will be heavy to shovel. - Wind gusts will increase to 25-40 mph along the south coast late Sunday night. *Monday Night into early Tuesday* - Continued/ongoing snow in interior western/central MA will spread into eastern MA, northern CT and RI Monday night. Lighter, more manageable snows expected in central and western MA and northern CT/RI. However, snow is expected to increase in intensity Monday night into Tuesday across eastern and northeast MA, with 1"/hr snowfall rates possible in these areas. - Impacts to the Tuesday morning commute are possible. *Winds and Minor Coastal Flood Potential:* - Winds will gust to 35-45 mph along coastal areas, with the highest gusts over Cape Ann, outer Cape Cod, and the coastal waters off eastern MA. - Storm surges of up to 2 feet are expected, but due to low astronomical tides, only splashover is expected for east coastal MA, including Cape Cod Bay and Nantucket (with northeast winds). Will keep a close eye on this as some pockets on minor coastal flooding cannot be ruled out. *Storm Total Accumulations:* - We are still expecting a widespread 8 to 12 inches over much of interior MA with as much as a foot possible in the higher Worcester hills and 12 to 17 inches in the east slopes of the Berkshires and into areas near/north of Route 2 into northeast MA. These snow amounts are for both periods of heavy snow combined. Amounts drop off rapidly as one heads southeast, with 3 to 5 inches from southern Hartford County eastward to Providence and Plymouth and less than an inch on Cape Cod and the Islands. *Confidence* : - Confidence is highest in the warning areas of western and northern MA, where >6" of snow in a 12 hour period or 8" in a 24 hour period is likely. Confidence decreases moving into I-495 and towards the coast, where east winds contributing to temperatures near or just above freezing become offset by heavy precipitation rates. - Confidence is moderately high for the second round of heavy snow Monday night/Tuesday period in eastern MA. How far west these snowbands extend is uncertain, which could affect snowfall totals in the Monday night to Tuesday period. -- Andrew Loconto/Frank Nocera If you have any questions or would like more information, don't hesitate to contact us via this email address, on NWSChat <https://nwschat.weather.gov/>, or at the following: National Weather Service Boston/Norton, MA 46 Commerce Way Norton, MA 02766 508.622.3280 Website <http://www.weather.gov/boston> | Facebook <http://www.facebook.com/NWSBoston> | Twitter <http://www.twitter.com/NWSBoston>
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