Coastal Flood in Massachusetts, November 23, 2011

Name: Coastal Flood in Massachusetts, November 23, 2011
Start: 2011-11-23T08:42
End: 2011-11-23T09:15
Location: Massachusetts

November 23, 2011 · NWS BOX · 2 events in 2 counties and zones

High astronomical tides combined with weak wave action to produce minor coastal flooding along the east coast of Massachusetts.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 2 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
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Marine and coastal
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Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths: 0
Injuries: 0
Property damage: None recorded
Crop damage: None recorded
Events: 2

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.

High astronomical tides combined with weak wave action to produce minor coastal flooding along the east coast of Massachusetts.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before the first event, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

NWS Boston/Norton, MA wrote its last area forecast discussion before the first event at Nov 23, 8:04 AM EST, 38 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Nov 23, 8:04 AM EST, 38 minutes before

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Hazardous weather outlook, Nov 23, 4:43 AM EST, 3 hours 59 minutes before

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The radar

The national radar mosaic for the moment the first event began.

Open the radar archive at this moment

Event by event

2 coastal flood. Local standard time, as filed.

Coastal Flood, Eastern Plymouth

When: November 23, 8:42 AM EST to 9:00 AM EST
Where: Eastern Plymouth forecast zone
Reported by: Amateur Radio
Coordinates: 42.079, -70.960 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

An astronomically high tide produced minor coastal flooding near Marshfield and Scituate. The tide gauge at Scituate reached a crest of 12.2 feet at high tide, flood stage is 12 feet. Lighthouse Point Road was flooded with seaweed and sand on the road. Water reached toward dwellings not on stilts near shore. In Marshfield, splashover occurred on North Street, bringing seaweed and sand onto the road.

Coastal Flood, Suffolk

When: November 23, 8:52 AM EST to 9:15 AM EST
Where: Suffolk forecast zone
Reported by: Amateur Radio
Coordinates: 42.264, -71.125 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

Minor coastal flooding occurred with the high tide closing Morrissey Boulevard.

What these are

Coastal Flood: Flooding of coastal land by the sea, from storm surge, onshore wind or high tides.

After NWS Directive 10-1605, the rules offices file Storm Data by.

The same day elsewhere

Every storm in Massachusetts in 2011 Every state in 2011 This day in weather history Warnings in Massachusetts, November 2011

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 2026-10-01. Each event’s entry at NCEI: 350469, 350470.