MA Nor'easter: Nasty Winds, Forceful Rain And Possible Outages

The nor'easter that promised to slam the area and dump some serious rain did not lie about its promises. Saturday proves to be marked by heavy rain and wind in most areas throughout Massachusetts, with totals climbing to three inches and 65 miles per hour gusts of wind in some areas.

This coastal storm brings heavy rains and winds that could cause some minor coastal flooding along the east coast of Massachusetts during Saturday afternoon, said the National Weather Service.

The NWS issued a wind advisory for Central Middlesex, Western Essex and Southeast Middlesex, which includes Framingham, Lowell, Lawrence and Cambridge. The wind advisory is in effect until 8 p.m. on Saturday, and warns of rates of 50 mph in some areas from midday through the evening.

For Western Norfolk, Western Plymouth and Northern Bristol counties, which include Foxborough, Norwood, Taunton and Brockton, there's also a wind advisory issued through 6 p.m. on Saturday. Winds in these areas could hit 50 mph from midday through the evening.

Barnstable County has a flash flood watch until 6 p.m., a high wind warning until 6 p.m., and a coastal flood advisory on Saturday, per the National Weather Service. Winds in these areas could hit 50 mph from midday through the evening.

Strong winds, said NWS, may blow down limbs, trees and power lines. Scattered power outages are expected (check your local Patch for updates on any outages). As of noon on Saturday, both National Grid and Eversource reported minimal power outages. Newton had 147 without power as of 12:30 p.m., according to Eversource. As of 12:50 p.m., 228 were without power in Methuen, according to National Grid. Eversource reported 513 customers out in Holliston, 300 in Falmouth and more than 350 in Plymouth at 3 p.m. Natick had 1,000 without power at 5 p.m., representing six percent of the customers with Eversource.

Central Massachusetts is seeing some heavy, steady rain as of noon on Saturday, and the National Weather Service predicts between a half and three quarters of an inch is possible in the middle of the state. It should taper off by 4 a.m. Sunday, with gusts reaching up to 25 mph.

The rain is expected to continue throughout the evening and into the wee hours of Sunday.

Check Patch for updates.

Photo Credit: Charlene Arsenault