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Somerville Storm Center: Snow Emergency Ends 4 p.m. Friday

Information about the Jan. 2 and 3 winter storm in Somerville. Check back with this page for updates.

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Update, 2:10 p.m., Friday: Somerville's snow emergency will end at 4 p.m. Friday, which means you need to have your cars out of municipal lots by 6 p.m., according to an announcement from the city of Somerville.

Here's the announcement:

"The City of Somerville will lift its snow emergency as of 4 p.m., Friday, Jan. 3.   Residents parked in municipal or school lots during the snow emergency will have a two-hour window starting at that time in which to move their vehicles. Cars still parked in City lots at 6 p.m. may be subject to ticketing and towing. 

Per City ordinance, property owners have six daylight hours following the lifting of a snow emergency in which to clear snow and ice from sidewalks. Paths must be shoveled to a minimum width of 42 inches, and snow may not be shoveled into the street. Failure to comply with these regulations will result in fines.

For more information on the City’s snow emergency policies, visit www.somervillema.gov/snow or call 311 (617-666-3311 from outside Somerville)."

Update, 10:30 a.m., Friday: Here's a list of unofficial snowfall totals from the National Weather Service:


Nearby Melrose got about 10.5 inches of snow. 

Update, 9:50 a.m., Friday: Although city offices are closed Friday, trash and recycling pickup will continue, according to the Somerville 311 Facebook page. If your normal trash pickup day is Thursday, put your trash and recycling out this morning.

The snow emergency in Somerville is still in effect, according to a Tweet from the city of Somerville.

The MBTA was experiencing moderate delays across its network, according to Boston.com and WBUR. The Red Line was experiencing minor delays, the transit authority said on its website.

Snowfall totals in Somerville don't appear to be great. Boston got 10.6 inches of snow Thursday, according to Boston.com. Observations recorded by the National Weather Service said Cambridge got 10 inches of snow and Somerville got only 3 inches of snow (with Arlington getting only 2 inches of show!). I imagine those numbers will be revised when more observations come through, though looking out the window in Teele Square, there's not more than a few inches on the ground.

There were no power outages in Somerville at 9:45 a.m. Friday, according to the NSTAR power outage map.

Gov. Deval Patrick told WBUR there were no major injuries in Massachusetts as a result of the storm

Update, 9:05 a.m., Friday: City of Somerville offices will be closed today, according to an announcement from the city. Emergency and public safety services will be maintained.

Thursday Updates


Update, 6:20 p.m., Thursday: The National Weather Service was predicting 10 to 14 inches of snow in the Somerville area by Friday afternoon. Temperatures will be low Thursday night, Friday and Friday night, with a high of 11 Friday and the thermometer reaching as low as -7 degrees, Fahrenheit, Friday night.

Update, 5:15 p.m., Thursday: Parts of coastal Massachusetts have an extended blizzard warning, though in the Somerville area a winter storm warning will remain in effect until 10 a.m., according to the National Weather Service.

Check out weather conditions in this Google Crisis Map.

Update, 3:45 p.m., Thursday: When the storm is over, you may want to go sledding. Check out this list of good sledding spots in and around Somerville:


Update, 3 p.m., Thursday: RiverDog, a doggie daycare business in Union Square, will be closed Friday, but it will be open Saturday for "open play," a good opportunity to give your stir-crazy dog some activity if he or she doesn't like the snow.

If you're a business that is open or closed due to the storm, leave a comment below.

Update, 2:40 p.m., Thursday: Tufts University will be closed Friday, according to the university's website.

Update, 1:30 p.m., Thursday: Somerville City Hall, Somerville libraries and the city's ice skating complex will close at 3 p.m., according to a city of Somerville Twitter post and an announcement from the mayor's office. All evening activities and classes have been canceled.

On Twitter, Somerville is alerting residents about snow related news using the hashtag #SomSnow. Some residents are also using that hashtag to share updates.

State offices will also close at 3 p.m., Gov. Deval Patrick announced early this afternoon.

Highways and the MBTA will remain open during the story, the governor said.


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Update, 11:05 a.m., Thursday: Flights at Logan Airport will be canceled at 8 p.m. tonight, and flights probably won't resume until Friday afternoon, according to WBUR.

Update, 10:55 a.m., Thursday: Regarding trash pick up—on its city Facebook page and constituent services 311 Facebook page, the city of Somerville said trash pickup will still take place during the storm. Remember, trash pickup was delayed by one day Thursday and Friday due to the New Year's Day holiday.

Update, 10:50 a.m., Thursday: Here's a look at what local meteorologists are predicting for the Somerville area in terms of total snowfall by Friday afternoon:


Update, 10:10 a.m., Thursday: Most meetings at City Hall have been canceled for Thursday night, according to the city's online calendar. As of 10:10 a.m. Thursday, the Board of Assessors meeting at 5 p.m. had not yet been canceled, but a city spokesperson said it was likely all meetings would be canceled.

ORIGINAL STORY

This page contains information about the winter storm expected in the Somerville area on Thursday, Jan. 2 and Friday, Jan. 3, 2014.

Check back with this page for updated information about the storm in Somerville.

Want up-to-date information about the storm and other Somerville news? Sign up for the Somerville Patch newsletter.

Snow Emergency Declared


The city of Somerville announced Wednesday it was declaring a snow emergency that will take effect beginning at 8 a.m. Thursday.

That means you have until 12 p.m. Thursday to move your car to an odd-numbered side of the street. If you are unable to park on the street, you can park in one of several municipal parking lots.

Parking During a Snow Emergency


Find information related to snow emergency parking procedures here:


School Canceled Thursday and Friday


All classes, afterschool activities and evening activities at Somerville's public schools have been canceled on Thursday, Jan. 2 and Friday, Jan. 3, according to the Somerville Public School's website.

Classes will begin again on Monday, Jan. 6.

Because Thursday was the first day back in school after the winter holiday break, the cancelations effectively add four extra days of vacation to Somerville students' winter break.

Weather Forecast


As of Wednesday evening, Somerville was expected to see 10 to 12 inches of snow by Friday morning, according to WHDH.

The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning, effective 4 a.m. Thursday and lasting until 10 a.m. Friday.

The warning said to expect "heavy snow and dangerously low wind chills. Considerable blowing and drifting snow with near blizzard conditions possible at times along the Eastern Massachusetts coast ... resulting in whiteout conditions."

Snow will begin early Thursday morning—in the middle of the night—but the worst of the storm will begin Thursday night and last into early morning on Friday.

The National Weather Service was predicting 8 to 14 inches of snow.

Shoveling Requirements


  • Homeowners must shovel the sidewalks outside their homes. They have six daylight hours after the snow stops to shovel. They should also use sand and salt where necessary. Fines for not shoveling range from $25 to $100.
  • The Somerville Fire Department asks homeowners to clear away snow from the nearest fire hydrant around their home. "We realize that the last thing anyone wants to do after shoveling out their property is to clear more snow, but the extra effort could be life-saving," the fire department wrote during a February, 2013 blizzard.

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