Winter Weather, Western Middlesex
- When
- March 12, 12:45 PM EST
- Where
- Western Middlesex forecast zone
- Deaths
- 2 direct, 0 indirect
- Coordinates
- 42.486, -71.392 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)
Winter Weather in Massachusetts, March 12, 1998
A fast moving snow squall suddenly dropped visibility to near zero on Interstate Route 495 in Boxborough and resulted in a pile-up of 30 to 35 vehicles and the deaths of two people. A 45-year-old man and a 3-month-old infant died.
Where it happened
Every event with a place to put it; 1 filed by county or forecast zone are drawn at its center, in a lighter ring. Tap one for its entry below.
- Tornadoes
- Tropical storms and surge
- Floods
- Wind
- Hail
- Winter weather
- Heat and drought
- Cold
- Fire, smoke and dust
- Marine and coastal
- Other
The toll
- Deaths
- 2
- Injuries
- 0
- Property damage
- None recorded
- Crop damage
- None recorded
- Events
- 1
Deaths and injuries are direct and indirect together, as the offices filed them. Damage is property and crops in the dollars of the year, not adjusted for inflation, and only where an office estimated it.
What happened
The episode as NWS BOX wrote it up.
A fast moving snow squall suddenly dropped visibility to near zero on Interstate Route 495 in Boxborough and resulted in a pile-up of 30 to 35 vehicles and the deaths of two people. A 45-year-old man and a 3-month-old infant died. Motorists were blinded by the snow. A thin coating of ice which quickly formed on the road surface contributed to the multiple vehicle crashes. The highway was closed for about 3 hours and traffic was stalled for 7 miles. Another similar heavy snow squall occurred in Windham and Derry in southeast New Hampshire, which resulted in multiple crashes on Interstate Route 93 and the closure of that highway. Massive traffic tie-ups affected commuters and motorists from Massachusetts on that interstate highway throughout the afternoon.
The radar
The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.
Event by event
1 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.
The people who died
As the offices recorded each death: direct deaths were caused by the weather itself, indirect ones by something it set in motion.
| Event | Date | Age | Sex | Where | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winter Weather, Western Middlesex | 1998-03-12 | Vehicle/Towed Trailer | Direct | ||
| Winter Weather, Western Middlesex | 1998-03-12 | 45 | Male | Vehicle/Towed Trailer | Direct |
What these are
- Winter Weather
- Snow, sleet or freezing rain below warning levels that still caused disruption, damage or casualties.
After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.
The same day elsewhere
More
Every storm in Massachusetts in 1998Every state in 1998This day in weather historyWarnings in Massachusetts, March 1998
Sources
NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database, compiled from the National Weather Service’s monthly Storm Data. Complete through 2026-06; NCEI adds each month about 75 days after it ends and revises past years a few times a year. Rebuilt 2026-09-24. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 5642650.