Local

Here’s how the artic blast affected Bostonians this weekend

A hospital emergency room closed, a show was canceled, and flights were delayed around the region due to the weather.

Steam rolls off a partially frozen Charles River in Boston, Mass. on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2023. Temperatures across the northeastern United States fell drastically overnight on Saturday, with wind speeds rapidly increasing, as the region faced some of the coldest wind chills in decades. Sophie Park/The New York Times

By Gwen Egan

February 5, 2023

An arctic blast caused extreme wind and cold in Boston this weekend. This also caused flight cancellations, frozen pipes, and more.

Flight delays

The below-freezing weather caused Boston Logan to experience over 263 delays and 86 cancellations as of 6 p.m. Saturday, according to FlightAware’s Misery Map.

According to NBC10, Boston Delta’s flight delays were caused by frozen fuel lines. The temperature drop also impacted JetBlue.

Pipes burst

The emergency room at Boston Medical Center will be closed until Tuesday after a pipe burst and flooded the building. This caused several “code blacks” in the area.

“Due to severe weather, a pipe froze and burst Saturday night in Boston Medical Center’s Emergency Department. All patients in the affected areas of the Emergency Department were safely moved to other areas of the hospital. The Emergency Department will remain closed until Tuesday,” wrote Boston Medical Center in a statement, according to NBC10 Boston.

A Rockport nursing home also experienced a pipe burst due to the cold temperatures. According to a Facebook post from the Rockport Police Department, the residents of the nursing home were evacuated and relocated.

Another pipe burst at the Prudential Center Saturday. Customers were alerted to the situation with a “Closed for emergency” sign on the doors, according to NBC10 Boston.

Sprinkler systems freeze at Wang

An Impractical Jokers show inside the Wang Theatre at the Boch Center was rescheduled due to the sprinkler system freezing, according to NBC10 Boston.

The Boch Center posted a Tweet saying that the show was rescheduled to Saturday, April 29, because of “record low temperatures causing the venue sprinkler system to break.”

The Impractical Jokers shows at the Wang Theatre this evening have been rescheduled to Sat, April 29 due to record low temperatures causing the venue sprinkler system to break. Previously purchased tickets will be honored on new date/times. Refunds available at point of purchase. pic.twitter.com/TFJFFAdQFw
— Boch Center (@BochCenter) February 4, 2023

Water main breaks

Boston Water and Sewer Commission commended the work of its crews after a water main broke and was repaired on 8th Street in Boston.

BWSC crews repaired main on 8th St. A big Thank You to the expert crews for the repair in the coldest temperatures in decades. BWSC’s 24 /7 emergency number 617 989 7000.
— BWSC (@BOSTON_WATER) February 4, 2023