New England WSC Physical Scientist Andy Massey scouting out high water marks associated with the blizzard of January 2018. Houghs Neck Maritime Center, Quincy, MA.
Flood Documentation and Inundation Mapping of the January and March 2018 Nor’easters in Coastal Massachusetts
2018 Nor’easters in Coastal Massachusetts
Coastal areas of Massachusetts were severely impacted by the January 4 and March 2–4, 2018, nor’easters. The USGS cooperated with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to collect and publish total water-level data (the combination of tide, storm surge, wave runup and setup, and freshwater input) from high-water marks and continuous water-level sensors, to better understand the areal extent, timing, and effect of coastal flooding from strong storms.
To put the January and March floods into historical context, the USGS computed statistical stillwater elevations. Stillwater elevations recorded in January 2018 in Boston (9.66 feet above the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 [NAVD 1988]) have an annual exceedance probability of between 2 and 1 percent (between a 50- and 100-year recurrence interval). Stillwater elevations recorded in March 2018 in Boston (9.17 feet above NAVD 1988) have an annual exceedance probability of between 4 and 2 percent (between a 25- and 50-year recurrence interval).
The USGS and FEMA have created multiple outreach tools to convey the extent of these two events, including two USGS reports, a geonarrative, a video, a flood event dashboard for users to explore high-water marks and flood inundation maps relating to the storm, and a USGS data release that includes flood inundation maps and data available for download.
Data and shapefiles used to document the floods associated with the January and March 2018 Nor'easters for Coastal Areas of New England (ver. 2.0, November 2021)
New England WSC Physical Scientist Andy Massey scouting out high water marks associated with the blizzard of January 2018. Houghs Neck Maritime Center, Quincy, MA.
Below are publications associated with this project.
Documentation and mapping of flooding from the January and March 2018 nor’easters in coastal New England
In January and March 2018, coastal Massachusetts experienced flooding from two separate nor’easters. To put the January and March floods into historical context, the USGS computed statistical stillwater elevations. Stillwater elevations recorded in January 2018 in Boston (9.66 feet relative to the North American Vertical Datum of 1988) have an annual exceedance probability of between 2 and 1 perce
Total water level data from the January and March 2018 nor’easters for coastal areas of New England
2018 Nor’easter Storm Events in Coastal New England
Dashboard presenting nor’easter storm events in coastal New England in January and March 2018.
January and March 2018 Nor'easters
Geonarrative about flood documentation and mapping of two large storm events in coastal Massachusetts.
USGS Flood Event Viewer
During large, short-term events, the USGS collects streamflow and additional data (including storm tide, wave height, high-water marks, and additional sensor deployments) to aid in documenting flood events. The USGS Flood Event Viewer provides convenient, map-based access to downloadable event-based data.
Below are partners associated with this project.
2018 Nor’easters in Coastal Massachusetts
Coastal areas of Massachusetts were severely impacted by the January 4 and March 2–4, 2018, nor’easters. The USGS cooperated with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to collect and publish total water-level data (the combination of tide, storm surge, wave runup and setup, and freshwater input) from high-water marks and continuous water-level sensors, to better understand the areal extent, timing, and effect of coastal flooding from strong storms.
To put the January and March floods into historical context, the USGS computed statistical stillwater elevations. Stillwater elevations recorded in January 2018 in Boston (9.66 feet above the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 [NAVD 1988]) have an annual exceedance probability of between 2 and 1 percent (between a 50- and 100-year recurrence interval). Stillwater elevations recorded in March 2018 in Boston (9.17 feet above NAVD 1988) have an annual exceedance probability of between 4 and 2 percent (between a 25- and 50-year recurrence interval).
The USGS and FEMA have created multiple outreach tools to convey the extent of these two events, including two USGS reports, a geonarrative, a video, a flood event dashboard for users to explore high-water marks and flood inundation maps relating to the storm, and a USGS data release that includes flood inundation maps and data available for download.
Data and shapefiles used to document the floods associated with the January and March 2018 Nor'easters for Coastal Areas of New England (ver. 2.0, November 2021)
New England WSC Physical Scientist Andy Massey scouting out high water marks associated with the blizzard of January 2018. Houghs Neck Maritime Center, Quincy, MA.
New England WSC Physical Scientist Andy Massey scouting out high water marks associated with the blizzard of January 2018. Houghs Neck Maritime Center, Quincy, MA.
Below are publications associated with this project.
Documentation and mapping of flooding from the January and March 2018 nor’easters in coastal New England
In January and March 2018, coastal Massachusetts experienced flooding from two separate nor’easters. To put the January and March floods into historical context, the USGS computed statistical stillwater elevations. Stillwater elevations recorded in January 2018 in Boston (9.66 feet relative to the North American Vertical Datum of 1988) have an annual exceedance probability of between 2 and 1 perce
Total water level data from the January and March 2018 nor’easters for coastal areas of New England
2018 Nor’easter Storm Events in Coastal New England
Dashboard presenting nor’easter storm events in coastal New England in January and March 2018.
January and March 2018 Nor'easters
Geonarrative about flood documentation and mapping of two large storm events in coastal Massachusetts.
USGS Flood Event Viewer
During large, short-term events, the USGS collects streamflow and additional data (including storm tide, wave height, high-water marks, and additional sensor deployments) to aid in documenting flood events. The USGS Flood Event Viewer provides convenient, map-based access to downloadable event-based data.
Below are partners associated with this project.