Hate snow? Avoid Boston. The Massachusetts capital was pummeled Monday by its third winter storm in two weeks, and according to the National Weather Service, more is on the way.
So what should you know before braving this week’s winter weather? Here are eight frigid facts for your cool consideration:
1. It’s a record-breaker. Counting the 20 inches of snow that fell since late Saturday at Boston’s Logan International Airport, there were 37 inches on the ground, beating a 1996 record for the greatest snow depth in the New England city. Plus, during the past 30 days, Boston has recorded more than 69 inches of snow, easily topping the previous record of 58.8 inches from Jan. 9 to Feb. 7, 1978. And, with a month and a half of winter remaining, this season is already one of the city’s 10 snowiest winters on record, clocking in at 73.9 inches and counting, the National Weather Service said.
2. Sodium overload. Boston city officials said crews have already used up almost 58,000 tons of salt this season.
3. It ain’t over until it’s over. The National Weather Service forecast as much as 3 feet of snow would fall across Massachusetts by Tuesday night, when the storm is expected to clear.
4. State of emergency. Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker declared a statewide emergency Monday to speed the state’s response.
5. Airport woes abound. More than 560 arrivals and departures were canceled at Logan airport Monday. But other places shared the misery, too. By mid-afternoon Monday, snow fell across almost all of New York state and across all six states of New England. Somerset, Vermont, had 14 inches, and Amsterdam, New York, had 13.8 inches.
7. The ice(man) cometh. Forecasters warned that ice accumulation was possible in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Delaware and Maryland.
8. Damn you, groundhog. Two more possible storms are on the way. While it was too soon for forecasters to know for sure, they said a winter storm expected on Thursday could be a big headache for the Northeast — and that it would be accompanied by the coldest air of the season, with wind chills of 10 to 30 below zero from New York northward.
Additional reporting by NBC News’ Erin McClam and M. Alex Johnson
Rachel Kleinman