Spring Snow Bears Down On Region; Rain Likely For Boston

It's no joke. A spring nor'easter is expected to hit Massachusetts late Thursday and into Friday — April Fool's Day — dropping up to a foot of snow in some areas.

The National Weather Service has issued a winter storm warning and says high-altitude areas of western and central Massachusetts could receive up to a foot of heavy, wet snow.

"Once you get out, toward Route 128 and especially I-495, that's where you could get several inches of this heavy, wet snow," said said WCVB-TV meteorologist Harvey Leonard.

But Boston and other coastal areas are expected to get mostly rain, or wet snow, that won't accumulate much. In and around Boston, the storm is forecast to start as rain Thursday night, flip to wet snow for a few hours overnight, then turn back to rain Friday morning.

"Temperatures will be above freezing, the ground is warm," Leonard said. "Right now I would think there could be a little bit of slush temporarily around Boston, but more than likely not too much in the way of accumulation."

Accumulations are expected to increase westward across the state.

The timing of the storm could make for a messy Friday morning commute, especially north and west of I-495.

With reporting from The Associated Press and the WBUR Newsroom.