People flooded supermarkets searching for bread and milk and other necessities as a winter storm approaches with snow and possibly freezing rain in the foreboding forecast.
Shoppers cleared out bakery and dairy aisles for the classic staples all over Greater Boston well into Friday night.
“It’s like magnets, the bread and milk. If you don’t have it you feel naked,” said John Lavey, of Braintree who plans on spending the snowy weekend watching football.
Weekend Storm: Latest snow and ice forecast for SNE. Still uncertainty in the Hartford, Worcester, & Boston areas due to sleet/freezing rain. Expect further adjustments in later forecasts! Higher icing totals shown will be localized, not widespread, but may cause power outages. pic.twitter.com/LmUP4bG07O
— NWS Boston (@NWSBoston) January 18, 2019
Elizabeth Mitchell of Braintree said she plans on weathering the storm by satisfying her sweet tooth.
“I got my bread, I got my milk and I got my cupcakes for the Pats game,” she told the Herald.
Debbie O’Donnell veered off from the essentials and instead stocked up on some snacks: “I usually try not to get ice cream but, you know, during the storm it’s pretty good.” She also bought hot chocolate.
Snow is expected to start falling between 6 p.m. and midnight Saturday. The biggest threat for this weekend, though, is the freezing rain and sleet that could follow the snow, making it more difficult to shovel and drive and could result in a flash freeze.
“The weather is going downhill this weekend,” said Tom Kines, a meteorologist with Accuweather. “It’s been a very uneventful winter so far. Sometimes those things happen. We end of paying for it at some point in the winter. I think that is what is happening. It’s Mother Nature’s way of balancing things out.”
The National Weather Service is warning that a “significant winter storm” will blanket New England with snow, sleet, freezing rain coupled with strong winds and coastal flooding. The snow will be followed by a bitter cold that will send temperatures plummeting starting tonight. Snowfall could be from 4 inches to a foot or more.
A cold freeze will follow the snowfall, and officials are warning people, especially in Boston, to stay indoors.
“We are encouraging residents to use caution when traveling, assist older neighbors and those who are disabled, and keep up with the shoveling of their property throughout the storm this weekend,” said Mayor Martin J. Walsh in a statement.