New England

Hurricane Update: What to Know as Dorian Approaches New England

The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency issued an updated statement Thursday about potential local impacts this weekend as a result of Hurricane Dorian.

The Category 3 hurricane, with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph, is now located about 50 miles east-southeast of Charleston, South Carolina. Dorian is forecast to turn to the northeast by Thursday night and increase in forward speed as it travels off the eastern seaboard.

If Dorian follows its current forecast track, it will pass about 130 miles southeast of Nantucket on Saturday as a Category 1 hurricane with sustained winds of 90 mph.

A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for the Cape and Islands. 

[NATL]In Photos: Hurricane Dorian Devastates Bahamas

Potential impacts:

If Dorian stays close to its forecast track, the following impacts are possible for the New England region starting Friday night and lasting into Saturday:

• Periods of 40 to 60 mph wind gusts across the Cape and Islands. This may result in some downed trees and scattered power outages.

• Heavy rain of 1 to 4 inches across the Cape and Islands, with the heaviest rain occurring late Friday night into Saturday morning. Some urban/poor drainage street flooding may occur.

• Minor coastal flooding is possible between 6 and 10 a.m. Saturday on the north side of Nantucket and perhaps some north or east facing beaches of Cape Cod. No significant coastal flooding or property damage is expected.

• 45 to 55 knot wind gusts and 15 to 20-plus foot seas are possible across coastal waters, especially across the waters east of Cape Cod and Nantucket, creating dangerous conditions for mariners.

The magnitude of wind and rain impacts will depend on Dorian’s exact track as it approaches the New England region. If the track of Dorian shifts a bit further east than expected, strong winds would be confined to Nantucket and points south and east. If the track shifts further west, then strong wind gusts of 40 to 50 mph may occur as far inland as the Boston-Providence corridor.

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MEMA

Coast Guard update:

Based on National Weather Service and National Hurricane Center forecasts regarding Hurricane Dorian, the Captain of the Port, Southeastern New England, has set Port Condition WHISKEY. While ports in southeastern New England remain open to all commercial traffic, the following preparatory measure is effective immediately:

Owners, operators, or agents of all self-propelled oceangoing vessels over 500 GT and all barges and their supporting tugs must report their intention to depart or remain in port to the Coast Guard within 24 hours.

State and local operations:

The State Emergency Operations Center is currently operating at Level 1 (Steady State Monitoring). MEMA is continuing to monitor the progress of Hurricane Dorian and will disseminate a Situational Awareness Statement with updated forecast information by noon on Friday.

How to stay informed:

For additional information and updated forecasts, see www.weather.gov/boston and www.weather.gov/albany. You can also download the NBC10 Boston app and the NECN app for the latest weather updates.

Utilize MEMA’s real-time power outage viewer to stay informed about current power outages in your community and region, and across the state, including information from utility companies about restoration times: http://mema.mapsonline.net/public.html

Additional online resources:

Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency at www.mass.gov/mema

MEMA's Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/MassachusettsEMA

MEMA Twitter: @MassEMA

Federal Emergency Management Agency at www.fema.gov

National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center: www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/

National Weather Service Storm Prediction Center: www.spc.noaa.gov/

Northeast River Forecast Center: www.weather.gov/nerfc/

National Hurricane Center: www.nhc.noaa.gov

Mass211 at www.mass211.org

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