Winter storm Nemo to hit Cambridge tomorrow
A major snowstorm is expected to hit MIT tomorrow, as winter storm Nemo makes its way across the coast. MIT has announced that they will be closed on Friday ; Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick has declared a state of emergency that will be effective on Friday starting at noon. Community members should check emergency.mit.edu for the most up to date information. The Tech will update this page throughout the night as we learn more.
Nemo will dump one to two feet of snow on Boston between Friday morning and Saturday afternoon, with snow potentially coming down at a rate of up to 2–4 inches per hour. The National Weather Service has issued a blizzard warning for this weekend, predicting winds over 30 mph with gusts up to 65 mph and possible coastal flooding. Temperatures will be in the 20s°F.
Snow is expected to begin in the morning, but not hit Cambridge in full force until tomorrow evening. The worst of the storm is expected for Saturday morning near Cape Cod, according to the National Weather Service. If it snows more than 18.2”, Nemo will be one of the worst winter storms in New England history, according to an article on weather.com. The snow should stop in Boston by Saturday evening.
Impact on MIT
Ahead of the official announcement, many labs and classes canceled tomorrow’s activities. CSAIL has asked employees to stay home, the weekly lab classes for the Gordon-MIT Engineering Leadership Program have been canceled for the day, and the Department for Athletics, Physical Education, and Recreation (DAPER) cancelled all recreational events.
In an email to all of CSAIL, Karen Shirer, the assistant director for administration wrote, “Given the projected snow storm for tomorrow, Feb. 8, 2013 and potential for dangerous and time consuming commutes, we are recommending that anyone who can work from home, please do so.” Most of the building will be locked for the day.
Transportation
The MBTA will cease service at 3:30 p.m. tomorrow, and will operate at a decreased capacity throughout the day. For updates, check the MBTA’s website as http://www.mbta.com/winter/. On the road, white-out conditions are expected on I-95 on the Friday evening commute.
EZride will implement its Early Release schedule tomorrow. In an email to parkinfo@mitedu, Larry Brutti, operations manager of the MIT parking and transportation office, wrote, “Evening Shuttles will begin operating full evening service at 2:00 p.m. inbound from Cambridgeport (2:32 p.m. outbound from North Station). Service will end ONE HOUR EARLIER than normally scheduled, with the 6:30 p.m. inbound shuttle from Cambridgeport (last outbound from North Station at 6:10 p.m.).” More complete information can be found at http://www.charlesrivertma.org/program_ezride_advisories.htm.
MIT encourages those commuting to take public transit and leave cars at home since road conditions will be very poor. The city of Boston has also requested drivers stay off the road so the Boston Public Works crew can clear the streets more easily.
In addition, the city of Cambridge and Boston have both declared a snow emergency and thus a parking ban. Non-essential city staff have been told to stay home, and public schools in the area will be closed.
Community members looking for more information can call the snow line at 617-253-SNOW. For additional snow and safety tips, visit http://www.cityofboston.gov/snow.