Blizzard 2015: Hour-by-Hour Forecast

The National Weather Service has upgraded the earlier Blizzard Watch to a Blizzard Warning for 7 p.m. Monday until 1 a.m. Wednesday for Eastern and Southeastern Massachusetts and all of Rhode Island.

The forecast is calling for 20 to 30 inches of snow, or more in some localized areas and snowfall rates could fall at a rate of 2- to 4-inches per hour at the blizzard’s peak.

The National Weather Service is calling the storm a “potentially historic blizzard,” causing many Rhode Islanders to reflect on the Blizzard of 1978, which caught commuters off guard and stranded thousands for days.

The storm is expected to hit late on Monday afternoon with the peak of the storm Monday night-Tuesday afternoon. The storm is predicted to stretch into early Wednesday morning.

“Heavy snow and strong winds will result in white-out/blizzard conditions with near zero visibility. Travel will be impossible and life-threatening across the entire region,” said the NWS.

Power outages are possible with wet snow expected to bring down tree limbs and wind gusts of around 65 to 75 mph. ”The height of the winds will be late Monday night into Tuesday. The strongest winds will be across the coastal areas,” said the NWS.

Coastal flooding is possible early Tuesday and possibly during Tuesday afternoon high tide. A Coastal Flood Warning has been issued for the South Shore. Severe beach erosion and major coastal flooding are possible.

Here’s how the storm will happen, according to Weather.com

Monday

p.m. to 7 p.m. -- Few snow showers

8 p.m. to 9 p.m. -- Snow/wind

10 pm. -- Heavy snow/wind

Tuesday

1 a.m. to 5 p.m. -- Blizzard

6 p.m. -- Snow/wind

The storm should be cleared out by Wednesday morning.

Stay tuned for updates, closings and more.