Heavy rain and strong winds will blast Boston area on Friday

By Melissa M. Werthmann, Globe Correspondent

As fall takes a final bow with cool temperatures and lots of sun, the Bay State will kick off the winter season with heavy rain and strong winds.

Today will be mostly sunny and temperatures will be in the low 40s, according to the National Weather Service.

Showers will move into the region during the overnight hours tonight and will continue through Friday afternoon, said meteorologist Charlie Foley.

Rain totals across the state will range from half an inch to an inch and a quarter, Foley said.

“We can handle the amount of rain, because we’ve been dry,” he said.

The storm will also bring high winds into the region.

“We could see winds gusting 40 to 50 miles per hour,” Foley said.

The strongest wind gusts will be near Cape Cod and other communities along the southeast coast, he said.

The whipping winds could bring down trees and power lines and there is a slight chance of minor street flooding, he said.

Boston will see about a half inch and the higher rainfall amounts will be in Southeastern Massachusetts, he said.

The weather service issued a hazardous weather outlook because Western Massachusetts and Southwestern New Hampshire may see a mix of snow and sleet tonight. The weather service cautioned drivers to travel carefully as the wintry mix could cause slippery roads.

Temperatures Friday will be near 50, according to the weather service.

Saturday will be cloudy with temperatures in the low 40s. New Englanders may wake up to falling snow Saturday morning, but any precipitation will quickly turn to rain.

It will certainly feel like winter early next week. Arctic air will blow into the Bay State during the second half of the weekend, ushering in below normal temperatures, Foley said.

Sunday will be sunny and temperatures will get as high as 35. Nighttime temperatures will be in the mid-20s in Boston and will dip into the teens in the western part of the state.

Christmas Eve will be similar, but there is a slight chance of snow flurries during the evening hours.

“With each progressive model run it looks less likely, but even if it pans out, it’ll just be some flurries, no accumulation,” Foley said. “I think it would be fair to say that we will not have a white Christmas.”

Christmas Day will be mostly cloudy with a high of 34. The clouds will stick around through the night and temperatures will dip to 23 in Boston.

The western part of the state will have to brave temperatures near 19 overnight.