Dec 19, 2008 11:27 pm US/Eastern
Heavy Snow Hits Southern New England
More Coming Sunday
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
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The snow was falling at a rate of one-to-two inches an hour Friday evening.
WBZ
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Snow falling outside the WBZ studios in Brighton Friday afternoon.
WBZ/Lori Lennon
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A shot out of a window on the thrid floor of an apartment building looking toward Main Street Fitchburg. Photo submitted Friday around 3:40 p.m.
F. Davis/WBZ
The first big snowstorm of the season hit Friday, and more snow is in the forecast for Sunday.
The National Weather Service has issued a
winter storm warning for all of southern New England, except the Cape and Islands, until 3 a.m. Saturday.
A coastal flood advisory is also in effect from 3 a.m-to-7 a.m.
1-TO-2 INCHES PER HOUR
Six to 12 inches of snow blanketed the region. It started around 1 p.m. and continued through the evening across southern New England.
By 7:25 p.m., Stoneham had 5.5 inches, Wellesley had 6.8 inches and Walpole had 5 inches. By 7 p.m., East Boston had 5.3 inches and Worcester had 6.4 inches. Some of the highest accumulations were in Buzzards Bay where 9.5 inches fell and in Acushnet with 9.3 inches.
WBZ meteorologists say the snow fell at a rate of one-to-two inches an hour and started to taper off in the Boston area sometime around 9:30 p.m. Drivers were urged to stay off the roads during those hours.
By 8:30, the storm had started to taper off in Worcester. Temperatures dropped drastically by 11 p.m. with the wind chill making it feel like zero degrees in some areas.
Another Nightmare Commute?
The heavy snow then shifted to the Cape through midnight. Areas near Boston will continue to see light flurries into Saturday morning. An additional 1-3 inches of light snow may accumulate Saturday.
The snow will be the light and fluffy kind, except on the South Coast and the Cape and Islands, where it will be wet and heavy.
Watch: Latest Weather Forecast
ORDERED TO STAY HOME
Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick made the call early Friday morning to ask non-essential state employees to
stay home because of the anticipated snow. He also urged private sector employees to take similar actions.
Boston Mayor Tom Menino issued the same request to non-essential city workers as well.
"We don't want to have people traveling in and finding themselves stuck in the middle of the day or during the evening rush hour trying to get home in what seems to be quite hazardous conditions," said Patrick.
The stay home orders reduced traffic and helped clear the roads enough to allow room for the crews treating and clearing the roadways.
Both the governor and the mayor wanted to avoid the snow storm traffic fiasco that happened last year on
Dec. 13. "We hope that people will just stay off the roads and give us a chance to clear the snow away."
Peter Judge, a spokesman for the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, said traffic was light as people apparently heeded warnings about the storm.
"People listened. People remember how bad things were last year."
Judge said discussions with local emergency management officials had been ongoing for several days.
SUNDAY'S STORM
Saturday will be cold with a high of 26 degrees, then more snow is forecast for Sunday.
There is also a winter storm watch up for central and western Massachusetts for Sunday.
Flurries will start around dawn. Heavier snow will fall on the South Coast and Cape and Islands from 7 a.m. until noon.
The heavy snow will move north towards New Hampshire during the afternoon. Rain will then mix in across southeastern Massachusetts.
The snow will end Sunday night, but not before the storm's tail whips through bringing frigid wind that could prompt a flash freeze. Expect Monday's roads to be very icy.
Boston and points west could end up with 3-to-6 inches.
Southeastern Massachusetts will end up with a mix of snow and rain.
The highest accumulations will be across northern Massachusetts and northern New England, where 6-to-12 inches could fall Sunday.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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