Massachusetts Travel Ban, Power Outages, and School Closings: Full Blizzard of 2026 Update

The Blizzard of 2026 has left Massachusetts in a state of emergency, with a Massachusetts travel ban still active Tuesday, February 24, 2026 ET, widespread power outages crippling the South Coast and Cape, and school closings stretching across the region. Here is everything you need to know right now.

Massachusetts Travel Ban: What Counties Are Affected

The Massachusetts travel ban on non-essential motor vehicle travel — signed by Gov. Maura Healey as an executive order — remains in effect "until further notice" as of Tuesday morning ET. The ban covers:

Violators face a $500 fine. Exemptions include emergency workers, utility crews, public works personnel, health care workers, patients seeking urgent care, gas stations, pharmacies, and food stores. Gov. Healey declared a state of emergency on Sunday ahead of the storm and activated 200 members of the Massachusetts National Guard for snow clearing and emergency response.

Boston Snow Totals and Massachusetts Snow Totals

The Blizzard of 2026 dumped historic snowfall across the region. Boston snow totals came in at just under 17 inches at Logan Airport. Communities further south were buried far deeper.

Providence shattered its previous all-time 24-hour snowfall record — a mark that had stood since the legendary Blizzard of 1978. Wind gusts reached 70–80 mph on the Outer Cape, with Chatham clocking a 73-mph gust — just one mph below hurricane force.

Power Outages Massachusetts: Eversource and National Grid Outage Map

Power outages in Massachusetts hit a peak of nearly 300,000 customers during the storm's peak. As of early Tuesday morning ET, roughly 250,000 households across the state remained without power. Both Eversource and National Grid are warning of a multi-day restoration timeline.

• Eversource outages are concentrated on the South Coast and Cape Cod. The company's president of Massachusetts electric operations confirmed power restoration will take three to five days for the hardest-hit areas. Eversource has opened five storm centers in Cape Cod, New Bedford, Boston, Southboro, and Springfield.
• National Grid issued a three-day timeline to restore power to the majority of impacted customers.
• Rhode Island Energy reported over 40,000 customers without power at the height of the storm.

Residents can check live outage counts on the Eversource outage map and National Grid outage map directly through their respective utility websites. Anyone needing access to a warming center can call 211.

School Closings MA and Boston Public Schools

School closings are widespread across eastern Massachusetts on Tuesday. Boston Public Schools are closed, extending what is now effectively an 11-day February break for students. Worcester, Cambridge, and dozens of surrounding communities are also listed as closed. WCVB maintains the full running list of school closings today.

Boston Weather and NYC Weather Forecast

Boston weather moving forward is not entirely clear. Temperatures are expected to climb into the upper 30s and low 40s later this week, which may melt some snow. However, a clipper system could bring additional precipitation late Tuesday night into Wednesday, with another possible system arriving late Thursday into Friday.

NYC weather was also impacted by the same nor'easter, with Logan Airport recording more than 454 flight cancellations — roughly half of all flights — and Amtrak resuming Boston–New York service at 8 a.m. ET Tuesday after a full suspension.

State of Emergency Massachusetts: What's Still in Effect

The Massachusetts state of emergency was partially lifted by Gov. Healey overnight, though the mass travel ban for southeastern counties and Martha's Vineyard remains active. State employees in non-emergency roles have been directed to work remotely on Tuesday. MassDOT has redeployed snow-clearing equipment to the South Coast, where multiple vehicles — including a plow truck — remained stranded on Route 24 in Somerset as of Tuesday morning ET.

Healey's message to residents: "We've got to be able to get snow cleared as quickly as possible so that we can get power restored as quickly as possible. That's why we don't need people on the road who shouldn't be on the road."