Massachusetts

Wind Damage From Jose Reported Along Massachusetts Coast

Jose was downgraded to a tropical storm overnight, but flooding concerns remain across Cape Cod and the Islands as the storm moved towards the region Wednesday.

Heavy rains have triggered a Flash Flood Watch across southeast Massachusetts through Thursday morning. Wind gusts as high as 55 mph are also expected in the area.

There are already reports of wind damage in some areas, with trees blocking roads in Attleboro, Dartmouth, Fairhaven and Franklin, and tree limbs and wires down in Bristol, Cohasset, Duxbury, Norfolk, Plymouth, Rehoboth and Rockland.

windreports
Downed trees and power lines in southeastern Massachusetts. Peak gusts so far have reached close to 40 mph.

Sandbags remain in front of a few businesses even as the storm moves farther east. People along the South Shore have boarded up homes and taken their boats out of the water as the storm rolls through.

One restaurant that is still open for the season, Sandy's at Plymouth Beach, was forced to close for the storm.

Owner Rudy Ferrucci said he was worried the waves would impact his business.

"I'm right on the beach, so any wave that hits anywhere is coming in to the campion area - dining room, we call it," he said. "There's a lot of people here, just not enough to open the restaurant."

As of noon, the waves were battering the sea wall in Plymouth. Multiple people could be seen on the beaches taking photos and video of the water. 

Nancy Monhehan, who was watching the waves, said, "It's peaceful in a way. Just come down here with your coffee and it's terrific."

Severe beach erosion is expected to occur along the southeast coastlines of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Cape Cod, the Islands and Block Island later Wednesday into Thursday.

One to three inches of rain are expected across Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard with up to five inches across Nantucket.

Surfers could be spotted in Nantucket, taking advantage of the high surf.

Surfers at Green Hill Beach in Rhode Island took to the surf Wednesday morning in the wake of Tropical Storm Jose. Waves were estimated to be between 10 and 13 feet. 

"It's usually pretty flat here, so, it's pretty fun," said one surfer.

Residents and visitors to the island may have witnessed strong winds but many said the storm wasn't that bad.

"I think we got really lucky. When you think about folks down in the Caribbean and of course Houston, but Jose is off shore and we've got some pretty wild surf," said Jim Spink, of Burlington, Vermont. "I'm sure you've got some photos of that."

Some area residents said the storm was pretty typical for them.

"It's just typical Nantucket. Another storm," said Brian Gray.

There have been a number of cancellations on the ferry schedule due to the storm. Five have been reported so far, with 21 trips still good to go.

Rough waves have forced the cancellation of whale watching trips for the next few days as well.

Contact Us