The third nor’easter in less than two weeks hit New England on Wednesday, pounding coastal areas with high winds and waves, with many residents taking the chance to get some much-needed rest after the recent storm.
On Wednesday morning, the National Weather Service issued blizzard warnings for the Massachusetts coast and the Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard area of Massachusetts. National Weather Service meteorologist Michael McCarthy said parts of Cape Cod, Hyannis and Nantucket may get as much as 15 inches of snow.
“That will be the main feature in terms of how much snow we do see,” McCarthy said Wednesday morning. “If it gets dumped down in a couple places, and if we see wind to push some of that snow around in places, it could still be enough to produce some blizzard conditions.”
“There’s also concern that the wind could add on to that (amount of snow),” he said.
McCarthy said the island towns of Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket could get more than 16 inches of snow. “Things could potentially get a lot worse in some spots on Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket,” he said.
Several areas of New England received as much as 7 inches of snow overnight, with most areas across southern New England receiving about 2 to 3 inches.
There’s also concern that the nor’easter could create power outages. There are 2,372 homes and businesses without power in Massachusetts, and nearly 150,000 without power in Rhode Island, according to utility officials.
The Mid-Atlantic and Gulf Coast states are also dealing with the aftermath of a storm that dumped a foot or more of snow, including in areas in southern West Virginia where some highways were closed.
“We had lots of damage. Power lines down, trees down and debris. Some damage to homes,” West Virginia Department of Highways Secretary Michael Burford said.
Forecasters said the storm started its southward track overnight Tuesday, producing about 6 inches of snow at the beginning and 3 to 6 inches of snow by sunrise Wednesday on the North Carolina coast. No areas in Virginia were included in the winter storm warnings, but snow was expected to fall throughout the day and evening.
The National Weather Service says up to 10 inches of snow may fall near Virginia Beach and along the coast of North Carolina and Virginia by midnight Wednesday. It said light snow and sleet could mix with rain and snow at times.
“There is still a concern about icing down the ground,” said Brett Albright, an meteorologist with the National Weather Service’s office in Wakefield, Virginia. “There is potential for some pretty slick driving conditions for areas around the Virginia Peninsula and up through Southside Virginia into Virginia Beach.”
A swath of northern Maryland and southwestern Pennsylvania also were under a winter storm warning Wednesday morning, with up to a foot of snow expected on the mountainous portions of the two states.
