High Wind — Northern Bristol, Massachusetts

2020-09-30 · Northern Bristol, Massachusetts

Event narrative

Winds gusted to between 45 and 55 mph. At 951 AM EDT, a trained spotter in Norton reported a maximum wind gust to 55 mph, although it likely occurred several hours earlier than that. In Taunton, a CWOP station measured a gust to 49 mph at 621 AM EDT and the ASOS at the KTAN Airport recorded 45 mph at 744 AM EDT. In Norton at 518 AM EDT, a tree was down on Fordham Road. In Mansfield at 622 AM EDT, a tree and wires were down on Essex Street. In Dighton at 630 AM EDT, a tree was down on Wellington Road at Old Wellington Road. In Taunton at 630 AM EDT, a tree was down on Bay Road at Jackson Street. In Rehoboth at 711 AM EDT, a tree was down on power lines on Pine Street. In Raynham at 744 AM EDT, a tree was down on a car on Route 44.

Wider weather episode

A cold front produced a fine line of low-topped convection that moved across the region from west to east during the morning. A southerly low level jet of 80 knots at 850 mb, combined with fully leafed trees, helped cause damaging winds. In addition, heavy rain, totaling 2 to 2.75 inches fell in Franklin and Hampshire Counties in western Massachusetts.

Source: NOAA Storm Events Database, event_id 917773. Narrative written by the NWS forecast office that issued the report.