This story is being updated frequently. If you know of any storm-related news write to us at editor@mvtimes.com.
Islanders woke up Friday morning to driving rain and strong winds. Ferries were canceled to and from the Vineyard through at least 10 am by the Steamship Authority. More cancellations are likely.
At about 10 am, the SSA announced that the MV Martha’s Vineyard was expected to make at least one round trip Friday morning at 10:45 am and then would depart Woods Hole at 12 noon. The Martha’s Vineyard made several crossings, but SSA spokesman Sean Driscoll told The Times that when it returns to Vineyard Haven at 3:15 pm that will be the last trip of the day.
The MV Island Home, on the other hand, canceled all of its crossings as did the MV Katama’s crossings were canceled for the entire day.
As has come to be expected, Beach Road is flooded and vehicles passing through Five Corners look more like boats than cars and they leave a wake. Just before 9 am, Beach Road was closed at the Lagoon Pond Drawbridge.
Oak Bluffs and Edgartown are also experiencing some severe flooding. On Seaview Avenue waves are crashing over the wall spitting rocks and shells.
Remarkably, there were few power outages as of 8:30 am, according to the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency outage map.
In Aquinnah, emergency planners have posted guidance for town residents. If there are prolonged outages, the town plans to open a warming shelter at town hall, the post states.
On Thursday, ahead of the storm, the SSA brought a steady stream of passengers on and off the Island. The ferries were in such demand that traffic was backed up on Beach Road for much of the day as if it was summer on the Island. Meanwhile, some passengers could be overheard saying they were getting off Island without their vehicles with a plan to rent cars on the mainland.
While some school districts on the mainland canceled classes, Martha’s Vineyard public schools remained in session on Friday.
Eversource staged utility trucks on the Island ahead of the storm. The town parking lot in Tisbury where the fire station was once located, was filled with trucks ready to go out and chase downed wires.
“We recognized the timing of this storm, right before Christmas, is less than ideal and we’re taking all necessary actions now so our team is ready to respond to whatever this storm may bring,” Eversource President of Regional Electric Operations Craig Hallstrom said in a press release.
Eversource encouraged customers to prepare for the storm by restocking flashlights, batteries, water, non-perishable items, pet food, and medications. “In addition make sure cell phones and devices are fully charged, create an emergency plan with family members and prepare to check on elderly neighbors and friends,” the release states.
Eversource also reminded customers to stay clear of downed wires and report them via 911. Outages can be reported online at Eversource.com or by calling 800-592-2000. Customers signed up for two-way texting feature can send a text to report an outage and receive outage updates as they happen.
Times employees reported that Island supermarkets were filled with shoppers stocking up on Thursday.
Along with the winds, there are coastal flooding concerns.
The Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency has issued an advisory stating that up to 3 inches of rain is possible. “Strong wind gusts are expected to begin overnight and to peak Friday afternoon and evening. Gusts up to 60-65 MPH are possible along the coast and up to 50-60 MPH inland during this time. Wind gusts of up 40 MPH may persist into early Saturday, especially over the Cape and Islands,” the MEMA advisory states. “Widespread minor coastal flooding along south- and east-facing shores is likely around the Friday morning high tide, with pockets of moderate flooding possible. Areas most at risk for moderate flood impacts in eastern Massachusetts are those communities north of Boston however borderline moderate flooding impacts from Boston to Scituate, as well as in Edgartown Harbor on Martha’s Vineyard, are possible due to wave action. Along the South Coast, moderate flood impacts are possible from wave action along the ocean-exposed coastline.”
After this storm moves out, brace yourself for an arctic blast. “Wind chills overnight Friday into Saturday are forecast to be in the single digits, dropping below zero in western and central Massachusetts,” the MEMA advisory states.
welcome to the future
A windy, rainy day in the Winter is the future?
If you don’t like the wethha, don’t worry, it’ll change.;)
More extreme weather is our future, enjoy your hydrocarbons.
A windy rainy day in the winter is normal. That’s called “weather”
A massive storm that brings blizzards, with snow measured in feet, record cold temperatures and damaging winds that have affected virtually every state in the country, cutting power to millions of people and paralyzing our transportation systems, is the new normal of the future.
That’s called “climate change”
Really? Because it happens every year. Sometimes more than once. Been doing it for as long as I can remember.
you can’t really believe that a storm like the one that just crossed the entire country happens every year, can you?
I have actually never heard of a storm of this size and intensity. Now, of course , if all you can focus on is your own actual experience, then yes, this happens all the time.
Or if you only focus on some large storms that have regional impact, you are correct again.
Yup, Buffalo gets lots of snow every year. About 88 inches per year, in fact.
This one storm dropped up to 84 inches in some areas around Buffalo .
I would think that the people who live in Buffalo would not think this event happens every year, sometimes more than once.
And if you look at winter storms on a national scale, this one was unprecedented.
Hi Jason– In case you are not paying attention, the death toll , just in the Buffalo area has risen to 37 from last week’s storm. They are now going house to house looking for more potential victims.
I actually watch the news, and have never seen anything like it.
Are you still convinced that coast to coast winter storms like this happen “every year” “Sometimes more than once”, due to some deep seated political bias that does not allow you to see truth when it is right in your face ?
If we do nothing about the climate, you may be correct in about 20 years, but not now.
Climate change is the future.
Exactly…more variances and fiercer storms. The swiftly changing weather is amazing….not in a good way.
Here in Minnesota it is minus 12 degrees and we leaving for London and Paris at 5 pm with two grandchildren. Minus 35 wind chill. Our future will deal with it.
Why has the weather become so extreme?
Was it something we burned?
andy– I’m sure that your grandchildren will be very happy that we are leaving them to deal with the increasing normality of severe weather events.
Good job, grandpa —that’s quite a bequest.
Metcalf has a new breach.
Water Street…aptly named.
Underwater Street
How can dunes that don’t exist be eroded? That caption on the Squibnocket pic is funny, like it was written by an inlander.
What’s an “inlander”?
A person who lives away from the coast and doesn’t know a cliff from a dune. AKA, summer people.
Been here close to 40 years, never heard that one.
It is a term used all over the US by people who live along the coast, and not specific to MV. I have spent my entire life in coastal New England and have heard or seen its use for as long as I can recall.
In fact, it has been part of the English language since 1610.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/inlander
Jim That sure does look like a dune in picture #21.
And it is possible, just possible that it is being eroded. Right there in that picture.
But if you don’t believe there are dunes on Squibnocket, well ok .
That is not a dune. It is the western end of the Nashaquitsa cliffs.
The only dunes at Squib are far to the west of the lot and those are nearly gone. I can recall when there was a double line of dunes along that part of the beach with the tallest one well above head high. I can guarantee you that I have spent more time on that beach than you have, and I know it intimately.
I wish this comment section had emojis enabled. I would add a whole string of laughing smileys.
OK– cliff…, dune… What used to be a cliff is now a dune, a double line of dunes that were well above head high are now a “bump” on the shoreline– or perhaps we could call it a very very small dune well above toe height.
The point is, it’s eroding..
Yup, but I do agree , it would be fun to put a whole string of laughing smileys here.
Except that kind of erosion is nothing to laugh about.
The point is that the writer used the wrong term for a coastal feature. Dunes are composed of sand and shift with the winds and tides. They actually move over time. A cliff is more permanent and does not move. It only retreats over time due to erosion. Would you call a hill a valley? Would you call a pond a stream?
Touche, Mr. Ventry
And they want/wanted a huge big box grocery store on water street, “a picture is worth a thousand words”.
As I recall, part of the plan was going to address the possibilities of flooding.
I do not recall the design being one that could be described as a “big box store”.
Did you ever see the drawings of the proposed project? If you had, you would know the proposed store was going to come roughly level with the high point of the parking lot and the area that floods would be parking.
If not for opposition by now it would have been completed, and be a vast improvement on the current store.
The Stop and Shop project was elevated 12 feet above the street according to FEMA standards. It’s too bad people didn’t take the time to truly understand the project. If they had done so we’d have a nice modern energy efficient store on that site.
With underground parking
That “big box grocery store” they wanted to put there would have been above this high water line.
Yes, a picture is worth a thousand words.
Thos sandbags took like they are taking care of the problem.
Giving a shout out to neighbor who worked straight through the night with Eversource to make sure we all have power for Christmas. Got home at 6:47am. A real islander!