Freezing Rain, Sleet & Some Snow Is Expected Tomorrow Night Into Friday Morning Across Western & Central Mass (Posted at 12:15 pm Wednesday 3/4/2026)

After a really nice afternoon with lots of sunshine and temperatures around 50 Degrees, it appears that we are probably going to have a real mess on our hands in terms of freezing rain, sleet & snow tomorrow night into Friday morning.

An area of low pressure is expected to track to the south of Long Island during tomorrow night. As it does so, it will pull down some cold air from the north while it precipitates outside. This, in turn, will lead to rain to change to freezing rain and then sleet from north to south during tomorrow evening. A changeover to snow is a possibility late tomorrow night across areas near and north of Route 9.

So, this is how it could unfold tomorrow afternoon, tomorrow night & Friday morning across the region -

FOR AREAS NEAR & SOUTH OF THE MASS PIKE:

Rain looks likely during tomorrow afternoon as temperatures fall through the 30s.

This rain looks to change to freezing rain during tomorrow evening with this changeover occurring between about 6 pm and 8 pm as temperatures fall to below freezing.

Temperatures then look to continue falling into mid and upper 20s during tomorrow night. This means that freezing rain is likely to continue for several hours tomorrow evening before it changes to sleet around or just after midnight tomorrow night.

Sleet then looks to continue during the after midnight hours of tomorrow night through sunrise Friday morning. The sleet then looks to end between about 7 & 9 am Friday morning.

The melt off of ice from the freezing rain will be much slower on Friday due to temperatures only rising to about 35 Degrees.

Ice amounts from the freezing rain looks to average at least one quarter (0.25”) of an inch with the possibility of upwards of one third (0.33”) to one-half (0.50”) of an inch of ice possible.

Sleet amounts may average up to one-half of an inch.

Needless to say, icy conditions on roads can be expected starting as soon as 6 pm tomorrow and continuing through all of tomorrow night. Additionally, decks, stairs, driveways, parking lots and sidewalks will also be very icy tomorrow night - so, watch that first step when going outside. These icy conditions look to persist through Friday morning.

Also, the buildup of ice on trees and powerlines tomorrow night may lead to some tree limbs and power lines to come down. Isolated power outages are a possibility.

FOR AREAS NORTH OF THE MASS PIKE:

Intermittent periods of light rain can be expected during tomorrow afternoon while temperatures fall through the 30s.

This rain looks to change to freezing rain sometime between 5 pm and 7 pm tomorrow as temperatures fall to below freezing.

Temperatures then look to continue falling into mid and upper 20s during tomorrow night. This means that freezing rain is likely to continue for a few hours tomorrow evening before it changes to sleet by about 8-10 pm or so tomorrow night.

Sleet then looks to continue through & past midnight tomorrow night. A changeover from sleet to snow may then occur around dawn Friday morning across areas near and north of Route 9.

A sleet & snow mix will then come to an end between about 7 & 9 am Friday morning.

The melt off of ice from the freezing rain will be much slower on Friday due to temperatures only rising to about 35 Degrees.

Ice amounts from the freezing rain looks to average around one quarter (0.25”) of an inch or so.

Snow & sleet amounts may average between 1 and 2 inches, especially for areas near and north of Route 9.

Needless to say, icy conditions on roads can be expected starting as soon as 5 pm tomorrow and continuing through all of tomorrow night. Additionally, decks, stairs, driveways, parking lots and sidewalks will also be very icy tomorrow night - so, watch that first step when going outside. These icy conditions look to persist through Friday morning.

Also, the buildup of ice on trees and powerlines tomorrow night may lead to some tree limbs and power lines to come down. Isolated power outages are a possibility.

Midnight Tuesday Night Weather Update On The Ongoing Freezing Rain Across Western & Central Mass

Freezing rain continues to fall across the entire area at the time of this post. Because of this, all surfaces are glazed over with a layer of ice making things very slippery out there right now.

The freezing rain is expected to continue for a few more hours before it comes to an end by about 3-5 am or so.

Even after the freezing rain ends, conditions are likely to remain icy across the entire area through not only sunrise this morning, but until about mid-morning or so. This means that you will need to really watch that first step going out this morning as decks, stairs, driveways, parking lots and sidewalks will all be icy. Roads & especially side streets and less traveled roads will likely still be slick right through the morning commute.

Temperatures are expected to rise to well above freezing by mid-morning and conditions will improve dramatically as all of the ice from tonight will begin to melt off. In fact, high temperatures this afternoon will be around 50 Degrees.

Unfortunately, we are probably going to have to do this all over again Thursday night as another low pressure system crosses the area leading to another round of freezing rain and sleet throughout Thursday night.

4:30 pm Tuesday Weather Update For Western & Central Mass

What a band of heavy snow that's pushing through the area right now. We've picked up about 1 inch of snow in just the last 30-45 minutes or so here in Sturbridge with some very large snowflakes falling.

That band of heavy snow will continue to traverse the rest of Central Mass over the next 30-45 minutes or so. Once this heavy snow band moves to the east, it is expected that the snow will quickly change to sleet and then freezing rain across the entire area from south to north.

The changeover from snow to sleet seems to have just occurred here in Sturbridge. This change to sleet and then freezing rain is likely to occur across areas near and south of the Mass Pike over the next hour or so.

North of the Mass Pike, the change from snow to sleet and then freezing rain is likely to occur from south to north between about 6 pm and 8 pm.

Once the precipitation changes to freezing rain, that freezing rain is expected to continue throughout all of this evening right through past midnight tonight.

It is expected that the freezing rain will end between about 3 am and 5 am Wednesday morning.

Ice amounts tonight are expected to range from one tenth (0.10") to two tenths (0.20") of an inch across the northern Worcester Hills to around one quarter of an inch (0.25") of ice across the rest of the area that are located north of the Mass Pike. For areas near and south of the Mass Pike, between one quarter (0.25") and one third (0.33") of an inch of ice is a strong possibility tonight.

Roads across the area are currently reported to be slick due to the heavy snow band that has just pushed through. Use caution if you are out and about.

I am anticipating to see very icy conditions tonight due to the expected freezing rain. This will make travel very hazardous and I urge you to exercise extreme caution if you have to go out. Also, watch that first step if going outdoors. Stairs, decks, parking lots and sidewalks will all be very icy tonight.