Massachusetts, 2018

Winter Weather in Massachusetts, January 23, 2018

January 23, 2018 · NWS BOX · 3 events in 3 counties and zones

Low pressure from the Great Lakes redeveloped over Southern New England on January 22, then moved off through the Canadian Maritimes on January 23. High pressure over Eastern Canada held cold air over interior Southern New England.

Where it happened

Every event with a place to put it; 3 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

Open the live radar over this ground

The toll

Deaths
0
Injuries
0
Property damage
$12,000
Crop damage
None recorded
Events
3

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.

Low pressure from the Great Lakes redeveloped over Southern New England on January 22, then moved off through the Canadian Maritimes on January 23. High pressure over Eastern Canada held cold air over interior Southern New England. There were several reports of one-quarter to three-eighths inch of ice.

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 Jan 23, 10:34 AM EST, 1 hour 36 minutes earlier.

Area forecast discussion, Jan 23, 10:34 AM EST, 1 hour 36 minutes before
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Hazardous weather outlook, Jan 23, 11:43 AM EST, 27 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

3 winter weather. Local standard time, as filed.

Winter Weather, Western Essex

When
January 23, 12:10 PM EST to 12:12 PM EST
Where
Western Essex forecast zone
Property damage
$5,000
Reported by
Amateur Radio
Coordinates
42.639, -70.868 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

At 1212 PM EST, an amateur radio operator reported a tree fell on a house on Amesbury Avenue North in Amesbury due to ice.

Winter Weather, Western Middlesex

When
January 23, 2:52 PM EST to 2:54 PM EST
Where
Western Middlesex forecast zone
Property damage
$2,000
Reported by
Amateur Radio
Coordinates
42.486, -71.392 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

At 253 PM EST, an amateur radio operator reported power lines down due to ice on Graniteville Road and Ledgewood Road in Westford. Also, a large branch was down due to ice on Shore Drive in Dracut.

Winter Weather, Northern Worcester

When
January 23, 4:13 PM EST to 4:15 PM EST
Where
Northern Worcester forecast zone
Property damage
$5,000
Reported by
Amateur Radio
Coordinates
42.351, -71.908 (the zone’s center; the record gives no point)

At 415 PM EST, an amateur radio operator reported wires down due to ice in Fitchburg, near the Ashby town line.

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 2018Every state in 2018This day in weather historyWarnings in Massachusetts, January 2018

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: 737783, 737784, 737785.