Stephen Sen/AP
Mother Nature isn't playing around this time. April's northeast winds heading into New England began dropping windblown rain, sleet and snow across the region. Many areas in the North are expected to see 1 to 2 feet of snow and power outages lasting several days.
Rain and sleet is falling in Boston, and it's getting stronger, with wind gusts expected to reach up to 50 mph. Delays are already starting to occur. At Logan Airport.
Heavier impacts are expected in New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine, where wide swaths could range from 12 to 24 inches, according to National Weather Service meteorologist John Palmer.
“This is going to be a big deal,” he says. “Anyone who has lived around here knows that 18 inches or more of snow during the month of April is on the historic border for most areas.”
Most of the rain will fall along the coastline, and most of the snow will fall inland.
“Mile by mile, doing what you want Inland, it quickly increases to 18 to 24 inches. It’s just a few miles off the coast,” says NWS meteorologist Michael Clair.
The snow will be heavy and wet, knocking down tree branches and downing power lines. He warns that wind gusts, expected to reach 55 mph, could add to the damage.
“This is such an intense, high-impact event that people should be prepared for power outages for several days,” says Clair.
New Hampshire utility officials said hundreds of additional workers were on standby to restore power as needed. This northeast wind followed last week's ice storm and brought another storm over the weekend. It makes potential damage more difficult.
“With trees weaker than they were last week, there is a greater chance that they will fall, damaging our electrical system and causing power outages,” said William Hinkle, a spokesman for Eversource, which serves parts of New Hampshire and Massachusetts. “Recent weather has also saturated the ground, which poses a threat to trees and increases the likelihood of them falling.”
Periods of such powerful storms are rare, but Hinkle says they are increasingly surprising.
“With uncertainty about climate, it’s becoming more and more frequent to see these kinds of non-seasonal events,” he says. “There is no season of the year without potential threats. [extreme] weather.”
As power companies prepare for the storm, the forecast for snow is welcome in New England ski areas, which have seen below-average snowfall this season. National Weather Service meteorologist Stephen Baker said not only will there be more inches of snow at ski resorts, but there will also be more powder.
“The mountains will make the most of this storm and some areas will get close to 2 feet,” Baker says. “The altitude will result in cooler temperatures, which will help snow pack better.”
“We are very excited!” We are delighted to see the weather forecast page for Wildcat Mountain in Jackson, New Hampshire. “The wildcats seem to be in the snowfall zone.” […] And the stoke is also high.”