Weather

FIRST ALERT: Strong Winds Causing Power Outages as Arctic Front Moves Through Region

The wind chill will be below zero for many in New England by Tuesday morning

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Bitter cold is arriving in New England as the region transitions from spring weather to winter weather again. We are feeling an arctic front moving through the region Monday night.

The front produced strong winds that picked up late Monday night, and wind gusts were up near 60 mph in some places, causing thousands to lose power across the region.

The National Weather Service - Boston reported a wind gust of 62 mph at Worcester Airport.

In Massachusetts alone, there were more than 28,000 customers without power as of 11 p.m.

National Grid reminded customers to keep their distance from power lines.

"Keep family members, neighbors and pets at least 30 feet away from downed power lines and report them right away to 911 or call us at 800-465-1212 (MA & RI) or 800-867-5222 (UNY)," the power company said in a tweet.

In addition to the power outages Monday night, there were also reports of downed trees.

In Massachusetts, the Westboro Fire Department said crews were working weather-related incidents Monday night, sharing a photo of a tree into a home.

They reminded residents to keep their smart devices charged and be prepared for the possibility of a power outage.

They also said to plan for cold temperatures overnight.

In New Hampshire, the Pelham Police Department responded to Balcom Road for a tree down across the roadway. Police said the tree struck a vehicle when it fell.

Bridge Street/Route 38 was closed at Balcom Road due to the downed tree.

Police asked people to avoid the area.

Elsewhere in Pelham, another downed tree closed Marsh Road between Willow and Burns. Again, residents were asked to avoid the area.

Snow squalls are possible and the wind chill will be subzero by Tuesday morning.

The snow showers will be hit or miss across New England Monday evening, but where we do see the snow, quick coatings of accumulation are possible, as well as low visibility and slick spots on any untreated surfaces.

Drier air moves in overnight, so these snow showers will be gone by morning. Lows drop into the single digits north, and into the teens and 20s south, but it won't feel even that "warm."

With the wind gusts between 30 and 50 mph from the west-northwest, wind chills will be -5 to -30 degrees Tuesday morning.

In higher elevations and in northern and western New England, frostbite can set in in 30 minutes or less on any exposed skin. Frostbite could set in in 15 minutes or less in the north country and in the mountains there.

The wind stays strong through Tuesday afternoon. Even as temperatures rise to the teens and near 30 degrees south with full sun, it will feel like the single digits all day.

Wednesday will bring in milder temperatures with snow showers in northern New England to start the day. Highs modify to the 30s in the north and the 40s in the south, with more sunshine south.

A cold front heads in from a storm system in Canada, which moves a little backwards (retrograde). So the colder air is pushed in from the northeast and highs return to the 20s and low 30s south for both Thursday and Friday.

The weekend looks quiet for now, but there is a storm system that passes out to sea, so we will watch that closely. Temperatures slowly warm up a bit to the upper 30s Saturday and Sunday, then to the 50s next week.

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