Rare May Nor'easter Brings Rain, Strong Winds to New England Ahead of Memorial Day Weekend

Forecasters have warned snow is possible in the mountains of Maine and New Hampshire.

People walk in the rain across from a fog-covered Manhattan skyline in New York City on May 6, 2025. Spencer Platt/Getty Images

A rare May nor’easter storm struck New England on Thursday, leaving thousands of people without power in Massachusetts and disrupting flights at Boston Logan International Airport ahead of Memorial Day weekend.

The storm brought dark skies to the region during a time of the year that typically sees more sunshine, while temperatures plummeted to below 50 degrees Fahrenheit in Portland, Maine; Providence, Rhode Island; and Montpelier, Vermont.

Winds of up to 40 mph had been expected to hit the region, the National Weather Service (NWS) said earlier on Thursday, while some areas were anticipating 2 inches of rain.

There was also a risk of minor coastal flooding during the evening high tide, NWS said. Coastal flood advisories and gale warnings were issued for multiple coastal areas of New England and New York, including Brooklyn, Southwest Suffolk, Southeast Suffolk, Southern Queens, and Southern Nassau Counties.

The heaviest rain was expected to fall in southern and eastern Massachusetts, and Rhode Island, where NWS issued flood warnings for the Pawtuxet River affecting Providence and Kent Counties. Minor flooding was also expected to impact the city of Cranston.

No catastrophic flooding was expected.

In Massachusetts, Boston was struck with heavy rains and strong winds on Thursday while Southern Massachusetts saw heavy rains that plagued morning and evening commuters. Power outages were also seen across the state.

As of 05:34 a.m. on Friday, there were 2997 homes and businesses without power across Massachusetts, according to the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency outage tracker.

Flights were also disrupted at Logan International Airport, data from FlightAware showed, with 500 delays reported and 66 flights canceled.

Further Flight Delays Expected

In a post on the social media platform, X, the airport advised passengers to check the status of their flight with their airline before coming to the airport, citing the weather across the northeast.

“Boston Logan expects some delays,” it added.

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority was also forced to shut down three commuter ferries due to rough seas. Coastal areas saw cancellations and service disruptions, including a shutdown of the Block Island Ferry because of adverse sea conditions.

In Rhode Island, Providence was hit with wind and steady rains by midafternoon. Further north, in Cape Elizabeth, Maine, lobster boats shook on the water as high winds brought choppy seas.

The storm was expected to linger into Friday, bringing winds of up to 22 mph across the Boston area, with rain showers expected to last throughout the weekend.

Forecasters said snow was also possible in the mountains of Maine and New Hampshire.

Nor’easters—storms along the East Coast of North America— are common at the end of fall and winter and bring high winds, rough seas, and precipitation in the form of rain or snow.

They typically form when there are large temperature differences from west to east during winter when there is warm air over the oceans and cold Arctic air over the land, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

The low-pressure system off the East Coast is currently being fueled by a jet stream that is unusually south at the moment.

The storm struck as the Federal Aviation Administration predicted record-high travel across the United States this Memorial Day weekend.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.