It’s round three for March nor’easters, and we’re finally throwing around the word blizzard. While the first two storms focused on flooding and massive power outages, the Tuesday storm looks to be a classic blizzard, with up to a foot or more snow expected along the coast. Check back here as we continue to update conditions throughout the storm.
9:37 p.m.: The National Weather Service has a new total snowfall map out. Keep in mind that Lynn measurement came in at 4:49 p.m. It’s very safe to say the city got more than a foot of snow.
8:50 p.m.: We’ve been updating the school closing list all day. Here’s the latest.
8:15 p.m.: Governor Charlie Baker said non-essential state workers would start their day at 11 a.m. tomorrow to help keep the commute under control while crews continue to remove snow.
7:50 p.m.: Swampscott has had a long day, with upwards of 25 percent of the town without power at times, but there’s light at the end of the tunnel; Swampscott Police announced the town will lift its parking ban at 8 a.m. Wednesday morning.
7:20 p.m.: The lights are back out for 655 National Grid customers in Lynn. The outages are in small clusters bordered by Lynn Shore Drive, Lewis and Broad streets, Nahant Street and Breed street.
7:10 p.m.: Lynn has 50 city-owned pieces and about 300 contracted pieces of snow removal equipment out on the roads, trying to clear city streets. They’ll stay on the job until the accumulating snowfall stop, according to DPW Commissioner Andrew Hall.
6:16 p.m.: There are more than 200,000 customers without power across Massachusetts, but along the North Shore the lights are mostly on. Lynn is completely powered as of 6:17 p.m., according to National Grid. Revere, Saugus, and Swampscott each have fewer than five customers without power. Nahant has 49 people still in the dark.
4:55 p.m.: State courthouses in eastern Massachusetts will open at 10 a.m. tomorrow.
4:43 p.m.: This slow-moving storm continues to dump snow on the area. And as the temperatures have dropped, the snow has gotten fluffier. That means snow totals have shot up across the region. There’s been 12 inches of accumulation in Lynn and Saugus, 11.5 inches in West Peabody, and 10.9 inches in Revere, according to the National Weather Service.
What’s yet to come? Up to eight more inches if you believe this NWS map:
As the moderate to heavy snowband pulls E, here's a rough estimate of additional snowfall amounts going forward into this evening; higher snow to liquid ratios, snow light & fluffy; expecting snow to taper down after midnight pic.twitter.com/Ny2tuXxX3b
— NWS Boston (@NWSBoston) March 13, 2018
3:51 p.m.: Students from across the state and nation plan to walk out of school tomorrow in solidarity with the kids at Marjory Stoneman Douglas School in Parkland, Fla. But how do you walk out when school’s been canceled? In Revere, it means they’ll meet at City Hall at 10 a.m. Wednesday, according to School Superintendent Dianne Kelly.
The student walk out in support of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School families and gun control as well as the student demonstration to support gun rights will begin tomorrow at 10 AM on the steps of City Hall.
— Dianne Kelly, Ed.D. (@RPS_Super) March 13, 2018
3:35 p.m.: So when does this storm finally clear the area? Not for a while, according to the National Weather Service.
Rough timeline of outcomes going into this evening, not meant to be exact; moderate to heavy band across central portions of S New England lifting off NE, tapering down behind it along with winds; winter weather becoming manageable into early Wednesday morning pic.twitter.com/9EouLj3Ce1
— NWS Boston (@NWSBoston) March 13, 2018
3:30 p.m.: Poor Swampscott is finally making more progress. There are now 247 customers without power in the town, which is a huge improvement over the nearly 1,000 in the dark a half hour ago.
3:10 p.m.: Here are the latest power outage numbers from National Grid:
- Lynn: 127 (0 percent)
- Nahant: 47 (3 percent)
- Revere: 158 (0 percent)
- Saugus: 91 (1 percent)
- Swampscott: 934 (15 percent)
3:04 p.m.: Revere schools will be closed on Wednesday. You can follow up-to-date school closure information here.
2:20 p.m.: The reports of crashes on the roads and storm damage are starting to pick up. In Lynnfield, the Reading Municipal Light reported a power outage due to a broken telephone pole on Tapley Road. And in Peabody, a plow reportedly hit a parked car on Aberdeen Avenue, causing significant damage. No one was in the vehicle at the time. Police were looking for a white pickup truck, possibly with a green sign on the side, that they believed may have struck the car. On the highways, Massachusetts State Police have reported tractor trailers overturned on multiple routes.
1:45 p.m.: If you haven’t been outside today, you had the right idea. Here are some photos of conditions up in Peabody Square.
1:15 p.m.: Trouble continues to plague the Newburyport/Rockport line on the commuter rail.
Newburyport Train 1154 (12:52 pm inbound) is operating 5-15 minutes late between Rowley and North Station due to low visibility from blizzard conditions.
— MBTA Commuter Rail (@MBTA_CR) March 13, 2018
12:50 p.m.: Lynn schools will be closed on Wednesday.
12:40 p.m.: Congratulations to the definitional sticklers out there; this is officially a blizzard in Boston. There have been three-plus continuous hours of sustained 35 mpg winds and visibility below a quarter-mile.
[BLIZZARD] Making the call; #Boston (BOS) automated observing station @BostonLogan has recorded 3+ hours of #blizzard conditions as of 12p (3/13) pic.twitter.com/uWO2wPKTxZ
— NWS Boston (@NWSBoston) March 13, 2018
12:36 p.m.: Nahant, which was battered by the first two March nor’easter, has seemingly had a little better go of it on Tuesday. National Grid is reporting its first two power outages in the commonwealth’s tiniest town, in the Little Nahant neighborhood. In Lynn, what has been a persistent 1,500 or so outages is down to 62 customers. And after backsliding late in the morning, power is back for hundreds of Swampscott customers, though 15 percent of the community’s customers are still in the dark. Here are updated outage totals in the area:
- Lynn: 62 (0 percent)
- Nahant: 2 (0 percent)
- Revere: 71 (0 percent)
- Saugus: 79 (1 percent)
- Swampscott: 936 (15 percent)
12:15 p.m.: What’s it like out on the roads? Item photographer Spenser Hasak took this time-lapse video as he worked his way through the area to get to the office.
12:10 p.m.: During a noon press conference, Governor Charlie Baker said temperatures will continue to drop during the day, which will lead to a fluffier snow and more drifting. He asked that residents continue to avoid the roads as crews continue to clear highways. The MBTA has been operating relatively well using a reduced schedule, he said.
“We ask everyone to continue being good neighbors, checking in on fam and friends and especially the elderly and anyone you know with a medical conditions and requires additional assistance,” he said.
12:01 p.m.: There’s a little more good power news, this time in Revere. All but 106 customers now have electric service in the city. The last holdouts appear to be scattered in a pocket bounded by Revere and Malden streets, Patriot Parkway, Squire Road, and American Legion Highway.
11:55 a.m.: Today’s not the day to get a haircut. George’s Barber Shop in Saugus is closed for the day but will reopen bright and early on Wednesday. You’re also out of luck if you were hoping to brave the storm for a Kane’s Donut. The Saugus Public Library and Barnes and Noble are also both closed.
11:45 a.m.: The National Weather Service has updated snowfall total numbers for Massachusetts. Click on the map to see a full-sized view. Boston had 3.4 inches at Logan Airport as of 10:12 a.m., but neighboring Chelsea had 8.5 inches by 10:46 a.m., so your mileage may very depending on where you are and how fluffy the snow is in your area.
11:40 a.m.: Some good news out of Saugus; the power is back for all but 74 customers.
11:15 a.m.: Revere Mayor Brian Arrigo announced a warming station would open at the Senior Center on 25 Winthrop Ave for those impacted by power outages.
10:52 a.m.: Here are the current number of customers without power in the Itemlive.com coverage area:
- Lynn: 1,465
- Revere: 523
- Saugus: 1,587
- Swampscott: 1,505
10:28 a.m.: There hasn’t been as much widespread flooding during this third nor’easter of March, but some of the more prone areas are seeing water topping the sea wall. Winthrop Parkway from Broadsound Avenue in Revere into Winthrop is now closed, according to the Department of Conservation and Recreation.
10:26 a.m.: An update from the National Weather Service:
[10a] Moderate to heavy snow banding persisting thru afternoon, 1-3”/hr snowfall rates; light & fluffy N&W; heavy, wet S&E, but as colder air wraps S into the storm, will see a change in consistency of snow towards the S-coast thru the day pic.twitter.com/KC1HfkKayo
— NWS Boston (@NWSBoston) March 13, 2018
10:08 a.m.: Both the Northshore Mall in Peabody and Square One Mall in Saugus are closed. Simon Properties has closed a number of other shopping centers in the area, including:
- Auburn Mall – Auburn, MA
- Burlington Mall – Burlington, MA
- Cape Cod Mall – Hyannis, MA
- Copley Place – Boston, MA
- Emerald Square Mall – North Attleboro, MA
- Northshore Mall – Peabody, MA
- The Shops at Chestnut Hill – Chestnut Hill, MA
- Solomon Pond Mall – Marlborough, MA
- South Shore Plaza – Braintree, MA
- Square One Mall – Saugus, MA
- Wrentham Village Premium Outlets – Wrentham, MA
- Merrimack Premium Outlets – Merrimack, NH
- Lee Premium Outlets – Lee, MA
- Kittery Premium Outlets – Kittery, ME
10 a.m.: An emergency shelter will be opened at the Saugus Senior Center if needed, said Town Manager Scott Crabtree. About half the town is without power, but Crabtree said no-one has requested the shelter yet. Residents with flooding or without power or heat can do so by calling Saugus Emergency Management at 781-231-4176 or by dialing 911.
“Flooding is not like the last two storms,” said Crabtree. “It is moderate as typical in the areas to be expected at this time.”
The main electrical substation leading into town is reportedly down, but National Grid reports most residents are expected to have power restored this morning. There are now 2,794 customers without power, down from 5,954 just a half hour ago.
9:45 a.m.: Swampscott schools has adjusted its kindergarten registration times because of the storm.
Kindergarten Registration updated dates:
March 15th 7:30 AM until 11:30 AM
March 20th 1:00PM until 4:00PM
March 23rd 8:30 AM until 2:30 PM— Swampscott Schools (@sps01907) March 13, 2018
9:38 a.m.: The MBTA is reporting delays on the Newburyport/Rockport commuter rail line.
Newburyport Train 1150 (8:52 am from Newburyport) is operating 10-15 minutes late between Beverly & North Station.
— MBTA Commuter Rail (@MBTA_CR) March 13, 2018
9:30 a.m.: Things are going in the wrong direction in Saugus: 5,954, or 50 percent, of National Grid customers are now without power, with the bulk of the outages in the eastern and central parts of town. Swampscott, meanwhile, has seen some improvement, with hundreds of customers once again up and running. There remains 936 customers without power in the town, including the same Humphrey Road region and parts of Vinnin Square.
9: 25 a.m.: If you were wondering about getting in and out of Logan Airport, you can check flight statuses on Massport’s website. If you look now, all you’ll see is a long list of cancellations.
9:07 a.m.: Traffic lights in Marblehead’s Bailey Square have malfunctioned and are now flashing.
https://www.facebook.com/MHeadPolice/posts/1614389008646983
9:05 a.m.: Amtrak is throwing in the towel, and has suspended service between New York and Boston for the rest of the day. They had previously suspended service only until 11 a.m.
8:59 a.m.: Swampscott’s power outage now covers 1,673 customers, or just over a quarter of the town, from the coast and Humphrey Street to Vinnin Square and up to Forest River.
8:55 a.m.: And just like that, the lights went out in almost half of Saugus. National Grid reports 5,199 customers—or about 44 percent of the town—is now without power. The wide swath of powerlessness includes Saugus Center; parts of Ballard Street and Lincoln Avenue; sections of Route 1 and Essex Street; Main Central and Elm streets; and Hamilton and Winter streets.
8:40 a.m.: After making some headway restoring power in Swampscott, National Grid now reports more than 860 customers are without power in the town. The bulk of the outages are in an area along Humphrey Street from Puritan Road to Shelton road, extending northward between Aspen Road and the Stanley and Middle schools.
8:05 a.m.: There are now more than 1,100 Lynn customers without power, mostly within an area between the Saugus River and Summer Street along Western Avenue. In Revere, the number has jumped to 477 customers, with the bulk of the outage along Proctor and constitution avenues. Swampscott is down to 689 customers in the dark.
7:55 a.m.: There are 180 customers without power in Saugus on Walnut Street, Indian Rock Drive, Arrowhead Drive, Alfred Road, Patel Drive, Pine Tree Drive, Gianna Drive, and Butterfield Road. Nationals grid expects to restore power in about two hours.
7:40 a.m.: Keolis and the MBTA keep talking about an “extremely reduced” service level on the commuter rail. What does that mean? For the Newburyport/Rockland line, that means an inbound train is expected in Swampscott at 7:46 a.m. and in Lynn at 7:50 a.m.. After that, the next inbound ride pulls into the station at 9:30 a.m. in Swampscott and 9:34 a.m. in Lynn. Here’s the current schedule for the line.
The core system (Red, Blue, Green, and Orange lines is operating on something akin to a Saturday schedule, and most buses are operating on snow routes.
7:35 a.m.: The heaviest snow is falling across Plymouth and Bristol counties, according to the National Weather Service. That scary-looking band of yellow on the radar is creeping to the north and west.
[730a] Heavy snow banding evident across SE New England; reports of heavy, wet snow … quickly accumulating, in addition to gusts up to 70 mph; but also watching a second snow band starting to develop in W New England, more light & fluffy pic.twitter.com/EgeXEVefJu
— NWS Boston (@NWSBoston) March 13, 2018
7:10 a.m.: There bulk of the storm hasn’t yet hit the North Shore, but there are already power outages to report in the area. There are more than 1,300 customers without power in Swampscott, mostly between Humphrey Street and Ocean Street, and about 200 out of juice in Lynn, along Lynn Shore Drive and Ocean Avenue, according to National Grip’s outage map. The company currently estimates it can restore power in Swampscott by 9 a.m. and in Lynn by 10 a.m.
Monday
9:45 p.m.: Don’t expect to see any flakes Monday night. The storm won’t reach the North Shore until early Tuesday morning. Once it gets here, expect 1-3 inches of snow to fall per hour throughout the day, according to the National Weather Service.
[930pm] Snow will enter the region around midnight and continue into tomorrow evening. Heaviest snow will be during the AM commute, with snowfall rates exceeding 1"/hr, especially across SE Mass. pic.twitter.com/WOTIhN57b5
— NWS Boston (@NWSBoston) March 13, 2018
7 p.m.: Here’s the updated list of school closings, parking bans and trash collection delays across the Itemlive.com coverage area.
6:20 p.m.: Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack said the state’s HOV lanes will be closed on Tuesday. All RMV offices will be closed. The MBTA core system will operate on a reduced schedule and commuter rail will operate on an “extremely reduced” schedule (Here’s the Tuesday schedule for the Newburyport/Rockport line). The Ride is expected to remain open. Buses will operate on snow routes. You can follow all MBTA updates here. If you’re planning on flying out of Logan Airport, you should check with your airline for any potential delays or cancellations.
6:15 p.m.: Governor Charlie Baker urged the public to stay off the roads during the storm, which will help the state keep up with highway and street cleaning. Non-essential state workers will remain home on Tuesday, and Baker asked private employers to allow workers to take the day off or work from home. “Forecasters are confident we will see a ton of snow…” he said.
5:40 p.m.: The Massachusetts State Police would like to remind you to “clear snow before you go.” You would think hardy New Englanders know how to push the snow off the top of their cars, but one look at highway drivers the day after a storm tells us different. They even made a funny-but-serious video explaining how to properly clear snow from your car.
“Like magic, gravity will just take the snow right off of your vehicle and onto the ground. Careful! It might get on your boots…”
With another pending #noreaster, Trooper @DustinGFitch gives a tutorial on keeping that #MAsnow cleared off your vehicle.https://t.co/OYm3r0kEdx
— Mass State Police (@MassStatePolice) March 12, 2018
5:27 p.m.: Amtrak will suspend service between Boston and New York on Tuesday until at least 11 a.m.
5:25 p.m.: If you had business in a Massachusetts court for Tuesday, you just got a reprieve. The system will keep courthouses closed for Tuesday because of the storm.
5:15 p.m.: Marblehead will close schools on Tuesday.
4:45 p.m.: Saugus will close schools on Tuesday.
4:40 p.m.: Keolis has announced an “extremely reduced” commuter rail schedule for Tuesday, as they prepare for expected blizzard conditions throughout the day. The MBTA expects to operate a weekday schedule for buses but will run on snow routes, and subway lines are expected to run a weekend-like reduced schedule. You can stay on top of MBTA and commuter rail alerts here.
4:15 p.m.: Most cities and towns weren’t waiting until the morning to cancel school, delay trash, or establish a parking ban. Lynn, Lynnfield, Nahant, Peabody, Revere, and Swampscott have cancelled classes for Tuesday, as have a number of private schools and colleges. Trash pickup is delayed in several towns, and both Lynn, Peabody and Revere have announced parking bans. Click here more details and an updated notifications.