BOSTON -- As the Bay State hunkered down for a nasty blizzard that's expected to dump up to 2 feet of snow in some areas, Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney declared a state of emergency, saying coastal town evacuations may be necessary.
Romney made the declaration just as the snow began to fall about 4 p.m. Saturday. As he became swiftly covered with snow, Romney made the announcement at a DPW facility in Lexington, saying with a full moon, there could be critically dangerous conditions for coastal residents.
"The snow is falling not in inches but in feet, we also have a full moon and that means a tidal surge. We expect 3 to 6 feet above normal high tide. That could be a problem on the coast. We're expecting high wind gusts. Very, very high winds gusts. With 4-to 6-feet surges above normal high tide, it could represent a very real problem for a number of homeowners. Shelters are being opened and the reason we're activating the National Guard is to be able to help in sheltering people who need to evacuate and find themselves on higher ground," Romney said.
As plowing and sanding trucks loaded up on sanding materials to begin their runs, the governor warned residents to stay off the roads so that DPW crews can deal with the huge amounts of snow that are anticipated.
"We need people off the roads. Not just tonight, but also tomorrow. With the snow anticipated falling at such a high rate, our plows can't possibly keep up, they'll probably be working right through the night and again right through tomorrow to get things ready for Monday," Romney said.
State DPW officials said they had about 2,000 pieces of equipment on the roads at the start of the snow storm. They have access to more than 5,000 and said, at the height of the storm they may have as many as 4,000 out trying to clear the roads.
Boston Mayor Thomas Menino also declared a state of emergency in the city in order to get residents to clear their cars off the streets so plows can do their work.
"The size and intensity of the storm requires us to declare a snow emergency beginning at 4 p.m. this afternoon," Menino said. He said the key to managing public safety in the city during the storm has everything to do with managing automobiles.
"The automobile, and what you do with the automobile before you go to sleep, is going to be a big factor in how we can make our city safe for everybody," said DPW Commissioner Joseph Cassaza.
"Let the public works departments do their job. It's important that we stay off ... no double-parking, no parking at fire hydrants or cross-walks. And also, during the snow storm and afterward, please, please dig out your fire hydrants," Menino said.
Added to that list, he said, there is no parking on main thoroughfares and no throwing snow back out onto plowed streets.
Both Romney and Menino were asking Bay State businesses to voluntarily close down by 11 p.m. Saturday to ensure that employees get off the roads and home safe during the storm.
In communities across the Bay State, blizzard warnings and snow emergencies prompted residents to flock to grocery and hardware stores to stock up for the kinds of provisions that many remember lacking during the notorious Blizzard of 1978.
In Winthrop, Mass., a coastal community along the North Shore, a main thoroughfare was shut down completely as waves battered sea walls. On the South Shore, in Scituate, Mass., fishermen raced to get their boats in safe harbors before fierce seas hammered the coast. In Plymouth, plow drivers were barely able to keep up as thick bands pounded the area and swirling winds filled streets with snow.
The National Weather Service has issued a blizzard warning until 6 p.m. Sunday evening. Winds are expected to be over 35 mph, with gusts over 60 to 70 mph. Snow is expected to fall at 1 to 3 inches per hour during the height of the storm and visibility will be less than 1/4 of a mile.
During high tide between 10 and 11 a.m. Sunday morning, there could be very strong winds and coastal flooding with damage. More than 2 feet of snow is expected along the South Shore, Cape Cod and the islands, with ranges of 1 to 2 feet inside the Boston, Interstate 495 belt, and 6 to 12 inches further north to Nashua, N.H.
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