Boston is gearing up for a wet stretch with forecasters warning of heavy rain and potential flooding starting Wednesday night. According to the National Weather Service, the rainfall is expected to hit mainly after 5 p.m. today, continuing into the night with a possibility of patchy fog and the rain could be heavy at times. Looking ahead, Thursday keeps the dreary theme with rain likely and gusty winds, while Friday offers a brief respite with a lower chance of rain before 8am and partly sunny skies.
The storm system moving in is no weakling, poised to drop significant rain over the Boston area. "Rainfall amounts could approach 3 inches in spots with isolated amounts of nearly 4 inches," as reported by NBC Boston. This deluge comes with wind gusts which may reach up to 50 miles per hour at the coast, and between 25 to 35 mph elsewhere. The weather bureau has predicted a 100% chance of rain tonight, so Bostonians should prepare for a wet evening ahead.
Flooding is a legitimate concern for the latter half of the week, with the potential for chaos including flooded roads, intersections, streets, basements, and yards come Thursday morning. "Heaviest rain moves off," the afternoon will see spotty showers with the possibility of "some sun sneaking into the picture" in certain areas, as per an interview by NBC Boston. Southeast Massachusetts might not be so lucky, with showers potentially lingering into early Friday morning.
Yet, as the winds "ramp down late on Friday," Boston will see a break from the rain. This trend is forecasted to hold for a couple of days providing some respite to the waterlogged region. However, Boston isn't quite out of the woods with the following storm anticipated on Sunday promising another round of rain and perhaps "another inch of (unneeded) water," as NBC Boston warns. A longer-term dry spell is forecasted to begin on Monday and could extend until the end of the week, finally allowing the city some time to dry out.
