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Blizzard Conditions Hit New England As Massive Winter Storm Travels North

Updated at 9:25 p.m. ET


The National Weather Service says snow in the Northeast will end Thursday night, but it will be followed by strong winds and arctic air "resulting in dangerously cold wind chills" throughout the weekend.

Wind gusts of more than 70 mph were detected in some places in New England, according to The Associated Press. High winds are expected to increase the possibility of power outages.

"Blizzard to near-blizzard conditions will likely persist into the evening hours from eastern Massachusetts to Maine," the weather service says.

A road begins to flood in Scituate, Mass., during a massive winter storm on Thursday.
Scott Eisen / Getty Images

The storm has caused four deaths in North and South Carolina and another in Pennsylvania. Reuters reports the cold snap across much of the country has killed more than a dozen people.

Coastal Massachusetts is also experiencing "major and destructive" flooding, brought by a combination of high tide and waves from the storm, the Weather Service says. Some roads have become impassable.

Peter Kadzis of member station WBGH reported:

"In Scituate, the National Guard was deployed after the town's sea wall was breached along Oceanside Drive. Local officials in Plymouth, Marshfield, Eastham, and Chatham — among other communities — reported flooding described as 'major.'"

According to the National Weather Service in Boston, the city may have set a high-tide record, although it will need to be confirmed.

The Globe reports that some Boston train stations had to be shut down because of flooding, which affected multiple streets in the city's downtown. Large chunks of ice were seen on a downtown street.






As the snow began tapering off, Weather Service officials tweeted warnings to residents to shovel snow safely, check batteries in carbon monoxide and fire detectors and clear snow and ice from vents outside of homes.

The "bomb cyclone" that bludgeoned New England is a powerful storm, bringing bitter cold and heavy snow.

The rate at which the storm has intensified is unusual — the Capital Weather Gang at The Washington Post called it "astonishing." A storm can be classified as a "bomb cyclone," or a particularly fast-forming storm, if the pressure drops 24 millibars in 24 hours. This storm has more than doubled that pace.





Earlier in the day ,NPR's Hansi Lo Wang reported that it wasn't just the ice and cold that authorities were worried about:





"At the same time, Mayor [Bill] de Blasio is urging people not to drive and to minimize their time outside.


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