Weather Service issues 'Life or death' warning, as major nor'easter hits Massachusetts

With a giant nor’easter slamming into the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast, forecasters are using warnings with dire language to inform coastal residents of Massachusetts that this storm will not be an ordinary event. 

In fact, record coastal flooding is anticipated in Boston and other parts of eastern Massachusetts, which is leading the National Weather Service to come out with statements that it rarely, if ever, issues.

The coastal flooding is the result of a long fetch of easterly winds, reaching hurricane force (75 miles per hour), pointed squarely at the north-south coast of eastern Massachusetts. The combination of astronomical high tides, astorm surge of 3 to 5 feet, storm surge, and waves of up to 30 feet just just offshore, is already inundating the coastline with water levels well above normal tide levels, according to the National Weather Service (NWS). At high tide on Friday morning, the water in Boston Harbor reached 14.36 feet, which was the third-highest water level on record. And the worst of this storm is yet to come.  Read more…

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Source: Mashable | Weather Service issues 'Life or death' warning, as major nor'easter hits Massachusetts