A powerful winter storm which tracked south of New England dumped heavy snow on western, central, and northeast Massachusetts and produced significant coastal flooding along the eastern Massachusetts coastline.As much as 1 to 2 feet of snow fell over a large area, from the east slopes of the Berkshires across Worcester County and into the Merrimack Valley and North Shore communities.  Amounts tapered off dramatically from Boston to the South Shore, where only an inch or two of accumulation was reported before the snow changed to rain.  Aside from scattered power outages and dozens of minor accidents,the heavy snow had little significant impact on the state, as most residents chose not to travel.  Official storm totals include 14.0 inches at Worcester Airport, 5.0 inches at Blue Hill Observatory in Milton, 0.4 inch at Logan International Airport in Boston, and 0.2 inch at the National Weather Service office in Taunton.  Other snowfall totals as reported by trained spotters include 24 inches in Chesterfield and Worthington; 21 inches in Ashfield; 17 inches in Goshen and Greenfield; 16 inches in Tolland, Townsend, and Haverhill; 12 inches in Westfield, North Amherst, Sterling, Shrewsbury, Hopkinton, Billerica, and Bradford; 10 inches in Whately, Wilbraham, Hopedale, Framingham, and Andover; and 8 inches in Douglas and Reading.The more significant impact of this storm was widespread coastal flooding.  A high astronomical tide combined with 15-foot seas to cause flooding along most of the eastern Massachusetts coastline.  In Marblehead, the downtown area was closed off after being flooded, and waves swept over the road to Marblehead Neck, shutting it down.  The storm surge also shut down sections of Route 129, throwing mud, rock, and a section of boardwalk across the road.  In Swampscott, a 60-foot section of sea wall along Blodgett Avenue collapsed, forcing the evacuation of several homes.  The Nahant Causeway was closed for almost four hours due to flooding, cutting off access to the peninsula.  Damage was most severe in Winthrop.  Waves crashed over the sea wall protecting Point Shirley during the midday high tide, inundating streets with up to 5 feet of water and flooding scores of cars and basements.  In all, about 50 homes were flooded.  In Scituate, another hard hit area, about 40 houses along Turner Road were left without power.  Residents estimated that 8 to 10 feet of water flooded Seventh Avenue, requiring evacuation.  In Humarock, a narrow strip of land in Scituate that often gets the worst of coastal storms, residents used front-end loaders and backhoes to clear mud and rocks from Central Avenue.  The road was closed with some sections flooded with several feet of water.  Mounds of rocks, brought in by the tide, were piled as high as 10 feet along the side of the road.  In all, as many as 10 roads in Scituate were fully or partly closed during high tide.  In Marshfield, several feet of water flooded roads in Brant Rock and police blocked off Hewitt's Point and the esplanade for several hours.  Waves crested over sea walls in Plymouth and left several areas submerged in 2 to 3 feet of water.  A portion of Route 3A was flooded.  Flooding was also reported on Cape Cod in Chatham, but was less severe than in other areas.

Winter Storm in WESTERN FRANKLIN, MASSACHUSETTS
From 03-JAN-03 14:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 (EST)
Property damage: 50K
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm in EASTERN ESSEX, MASSACHUSETTS
From 03-JAN-03 14:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm in EASTERN FRANKLIN, MASSACHUSETTS
From 03-JAN-03 14:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm in EASTERN HAMPDEN, MASSACHUSETTS
From 03-JAN-03 14:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm in EASTERN HAMPSHIRE, MASSACHUSETTS
From 03-JAN-03 14:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm in NORTHERN WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS
From 03-JAN-03 14:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm in SOUTHEAST MIDDLESEX, MASSACHUSETTS
From 03-JAN-03 14:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm in SOUTHERN WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS
From 03-JAN-03 14:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm in WESTERN ESSEX, MASSACHUSETTS
From 03-JAN-03 14:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm in WESTERN HAMPDEN, MASSACHUSETTS
From 03-JAN-03 14:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm in WESTERN HAMPSHIRE, MASSACHUSETTS
From 03-JAN-03 14:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Winter Storm in WESTERN MIDDLESEX, MASSACHUSETTS
From 03-JAN-03 14:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 (EST)
Reported by: TRAINED SPOTTER

Storm Surge/Tide in EASTERN ESSEX, MASSACHUSETTS
From 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 14:00:00 (EST)
Property damage: 100K
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER

Storm Surge/Tide in SUFFOLK / ALSO PART OF NORFOLK, MASSACHUSETTS
From 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 14:00:00 (EST)
Property damage: 250K
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER

Storm Surge/Tide in EASTERN NORFOLK, MASSACHUSETTS
From 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 14:00:00 (EST)
Property damage: 50K
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER

Storm Surge/Tide in EASTERN PLYMOUTH / ALSO PART OF NORFOLK, MASSACHUSETTS
From 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 14:00:00 (EST)
Property damage: 100K
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER

Storm Surge/Tide in BARNSTABLE, MASSACHUSETTS
From 04-JAN-03 11:00:00 to 04-JAN-03 14:00:00 (EST)
Property damage: 50K
Reported by: EMERGENCY MANAGER