By Melissa Werthmann, Globe Correspondent
Thunderstorms have begun rolling across Massachusetts this afternoon, threatening the region with heavy rain, 60-mile-per-hour winds, and quarter-sized hail.
The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Essex and Middlesex counties in Massachusetts as storms rumbled through the area.
At one point, the weather service even issued a tornado warning for northeastern Suffolk County and extreme south central Essex County, but the warning was canceled after the storm passed through the area.
The service also issued a flash flood warning, saying that the storm appeared dumping rain at a rate of 1 ½ inches per hour.
The service has issued a severe thunderstorm watch for the entire state. Forecasters say areas south of the Massachusetts Turnpike in Massachusetts will be hit the hardest.
Weather service radar shortly before 1:30 p.m. showed storms moving through the northeastern tip of the state and a second set of storms moving into the southwestern tip of the state.
Meteorologist Charlie Foley said the storms will be on and off, causing intense, but brief, rainfall that could cause flash flooding.
He said the airmass triggering the storms is very slow-moving, and contains a lot of moisture, which means it has the potential to create torrential downpours that will dump two inches of rain in some places.
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Thunderstorms have begun rolling across Massachusetts this afternoon, threatening the region with heavy rain, 60-mile-per-hour winds, and quarter-sized hail.
The National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Essex and Middlesex counties in Massachusetts as storms rumbled through the area.
At one point, the weather service even issued a tornado warning for northeastern Suffolk County and extreme south central Essex County, but the warning was canceled after the storm passed through the area.
The service also issued a flash flood warning, saying that the storm appeared dumping rain at a rate of 1 ½ inches per hour.
The service has issued a severe thunderstorm watch for the entire state. Forecasters say areas south of the Massachusetts Turnpike in Massachusetts will be hit the hardest.
Weather service radar shortly before 1:30 p.m. showed storms moving through the northeastern tip of the state and a second set of storms moving into the southwestern tip of the state.
Meteorologist Charlie Foley said the storms will be on and off, causing intense, but brief, rainfall that could cause flash flooding.
He said the airmass triggering the storms is very slow-moving, and contains a lot of moisture, which means it has the potential to create torrential downpours that will dump two inches of rain in some places.
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