By Jesse Liebman --
February 26, 2010
A major winter storm will continue to cause coastal and inland flooding as melting snow and rain causes rivers to swell and heavy wind-driven seas to pummel the shoreline, and has left about 100,000 Massachusetts customers without power.
A spokesman for the state Emergency Management Agency said
Friday that most of the power outages are concentrated in the northeastern part
of the state.
The storm left debris all over the roads, caused some minor road flooding, and forced commuter rail and subway delays.
A High Wind Warning is in effect until early Friday morning for all coastal areas in eastern Massachusetts, as well as Rockingham County in New Hampshire. These regions remain under a Coastal Flood Watch until Friday evening. Winds reached speeds of over 60 miles per hour Thursday evening.
A major concern is the possibility of coastal flooding Friday during high tide.
In Freetown, a state of emergency was declared by local officials, and evacuations were recommended as the integrity of the Forge Pond dam was in question. The Fire Department reported water flowing over the dam and coming through the base of the structure and said crews were applying sandbags to fight the flooding.
The storm will gradually move across southern New England toward New York, said Bill Simpson, another meteorologist at the National Weather Service. It will then head back down toward northern New Jersey and slowly weaken as it circles back toward southern New England today.
