Dry weather streak coming to an end with heavy rain, localized flooding in Massachusetts forecast

The WBZ Weather team is issuing a NEXT Weather Alert for a band of heavy rain in the forecast for Massachusetts on Friday. 

It has been nearly three weeks since Boston recorded any measurable rainfall, the longest streak in two years.

On top of that, October was the second sunniest month ever recorded in Boston with just 14% overcast skies for the entire month.

Alas, all good things must eventually come to an end.

When will it rain in Boston?

Later Thursday night and into Friday an area of high moisture content will extend all the way from the Tropics up through eastern Mass.

This will allow for some heavy, tropical-like downpours to push all the way up the East Coast.

There may be a few scattered showers during the day on Friday but the heavier precipitation will not arrive until later Friday afternoon or early Friday evening.

The heaviest rain will fall Friday night after dark through the predawn hours on Saturday.

The band of rain will exit the coastline by dawn on Saturday. Most of southern New England will be left with mainly cloudy skies and few scattered showers on Saturday.

How much rain?

There is potential for 1-3" of rainfall underneath the heavy band that forms.

There may even be as much as 4-5" in isolated locations.

The highest risk for several inches of rain is across southeastern Mass., including southern Plymouth and Bristol counties as well as Cape Cod and the Islands. The Boston area will be on the edge of the heaviest rainfall.

Areas to the north and west of Boston are likely to receive less than an inch of rain, and in some cases very little rain at all.

Given that it has been so dry for the last 3 weeks, there is no concern about large river or widespread flooding with this event.  However, there may be some localized street/urban flooding underneath some of the heavier rain bands.