Coastal Flooding May Hit Cape Cod, Islands During Pre-Christmas Storm

CAPE COD, MA — A major pre-holiday storm may not bring a white Christmas to the North Shore but it could deliver a punishing dose of wind, beach erosion and flooding from the storm surge combined with astronomically high tides.

The National Weather Service on Wednesday issued a Coastal Flood Watch that included the threat of minor to moderate flooding around the time of the Friday late-morning high tide, flooding of vulnerable shoreline areas on Friday, and "significant" beach erosion.

Up to 3 feet of inundation could coincide with the high tide on Friday morning, according to the weather service.

Cape Cod is expected to be hit with rain starting late Thursday night into early Friday afternoon with winds whipping between 60 and 65 miles per hour.

"Damaging winds could blow down trees and power lines. Widespread power outages are possible. Travel could be difficult, especially for high-profile vehicles," the weather service said.

A Storm Watch is also in effect for anyone actually on the water off of the Cape and Islands with predicted frequent gusts and sustained winds of 48 to 63 knots and rough seas.

If there is any good news it will be the temperatures in the mid to upper 50s for the height of the storm — eliminating any blizzard concerns. A sharp drop in temperatures late in the day Friday, however, may result in icy spots for those traveling to holiday events.

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are forecast to be clear but very cold.

Thursday and Friday will be big travel days ahead of the Christmas weekend for both flying and driving. AAA is estimating that some 112.7 million people in the U.S. will travel 50 miles or more over the holidays, including more than 4 million New England residents.