It snowed throughout the night making roads slick and dangerous, and many bus stops and sidewalks are still covered.
Boston Public Schools did not close school today despite the continued snowfall throughout the night and into this afternoon. With sidewalks, streets, bus stops all being needing to be plowed, and with some not being plowed once - should Boston schools have been cancelled today? Boston Public Schools have already said they will forgive all absences today, according to WBZ's Beth Germano. Boston Public Schools posted that school was open today, and a message about buses, "Some school buses are delayed due to heavy traffic in the city. All of our school buses are on the road and will complete their scheduled routes this morning and afternoon. If you have school bus transportation questions, please call our Transportation Hotline at (617) …
The Back Bay is expecting several inches of snow or more from this week's storm. See how many inches have fallen in your area with the LIVE map below.
The map above, provided by the National Weather Service, shows total snowfall in the Back Bay area over the past 3 days. The map is centered around the red marker, which is in the middle of Boston's Patch's coverage area, and the map updates every six hours, starting around 2 a.m. each day. Note: This map is not visible on some mobile devices.
City officials urge caution during the remainder of Friday's winter storm.
Boston Public Schools remain open Friday morning, though Mayor Thomas Menino is urging residents to use caution and take advantage of public transportation as much as possible for their morning commute in light of the ongoing winter storm. The National Weather Service has issued a winter storm warning for eastern Massachusetts until about 1 p.m. Friday. The weather advisory calls for heavy, wet snow with an accumulation of 6-10 inches as well as strong wind gusts up to 50 miles per hour. As of 8 a.m., the city had not issued a snow emergency or parking ban; regular parking rules remain in effect.
Do you agree with the governor's decision or was it too drastic?
All non-emergency drivers were ordered off the roads on Friday when Gov. Deval Patrick issued an executive order banning travel during the blizzard. (Editor's note: The ban is lifted statewide as of 4 p.m. Saturday.) Patrick's executive order is being praised by some and bashed by others, reported The Boston Globe. While former Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis, who was in charge of the commonwealth during the Blizzard of ’78, praised the governor’s move, others called the order “tyrannical” and say the strict ban and hefty fines were too much, according to The Globe. Those caught violating the ban would face up to a year in jail and a $500 fine. What do you think? Do you agree with the governor’s decision or do you think the travel ban …
Let's measure the blizzard through lawn ornaments!
We at Patch like to have fun – even when we’re covering a story as big as the Blizzard of ’13! So when the biggest storm in years (potentially in the history of Boston weather) is headed our way, we get into battle mode – and even get a little silly. That’s what this idea is about – and we want you to take part too! A fun way we want to track the storm across Massachusetts is through lawn ornaments. They serve a purpose in the spring and summer, but often feel left out in the cold of winter. Not anymore. We are posting photos of lawn ornaments throughout Massachusetts to highlight snowfall across the commonwealth during and after the storm. All you need to do is hit the Upload Photos and Videos button and upload your own. If we’re stuck at…
1:35 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
It seems that this overreaction by the government and the media has the same effect as political correctness. That is to say it makes us numb to words like "racist" and "dangerous conditions".....so that when we really need to be aware of those problems....we don't hear the warning or care. more ›
Share photos and memories on the 35th anniversary of this major winter storm.
The snowfall in Boston so far this winter has been minimal, but 35 years ago it was a much different story. On Feb. 6, 1978, the Boston area, along with much of Massachusetts, saw a record 27 inches of snow fall, with the added bonus of hurricane force winds. The storm began the morning of Feb. 6 and lasted through the following evening. It was a storm that was never really predicted to be so large, and yet from it one good thing came—we learned about emergency preparedness. The snow came down so quickly (at a rate of one inch an hour) that thousands of motorists were stranded in snowdrifts as they drove down Route 128. Roads throughout the state were impassible and cars were abandoned at every turn. For those of us who were old …
2:59 pm on Friday, February 8, 2013
Wow, what a totally different experience! I was in college and we hadn't yet started the spring term so there we were, hundreds of kids with no reading to do or papers to write. Harvard closed for the first time in 40 years and there was a state of emergency. All the university employees stayed home and we amused ourselves rumbling around in the tunnels under the Houses looking for peanut butter … more ›
JT
3:40 pm on Sunday, February 10, 2013
People should use their common sense in situations like this--but there are always some who won't and will endanger others in the process. The ban was good in that respect, and the $500 fine certainly should have made folks think twice if they were hesitating over driving or staying home for no particular reason. However, the threatened jail time was absurd--and enough's been said about that here… more ›