Governor Maura Healey on Tuesday lifted the ban on non-essential motor vehicle travel put in place during Monday’s blizzard.
Healey put the ban in place in Bristol, Plymouth, Barnstable, and Duke counties on Monday afternoon. The four counties shared the worst of Monday’s powerful storm. First responders and utility crews navigated downed trees and power lines amid the whiteout and many roads were impassable.
Schools across the state closed, and hundreds of thousands of people were left in the dark as the storm battered New England with heavy snow and hurricane-force wind gusts.
Healey said Tuesday that Bay Staters are still asked to exercise caution and to stay home if possible to allow crews to continue their cleanup efforts.
[ South Shore, Cape Cod residents in dark, cold after wind-blown snow batters communities ]
The state of emergency remains in effect for all counties except for Berkshire, Hampden, Hampshire and Franklin.
Some of the worst-hit cities, like New Bedford, Fall River, and Brockton still have local travel restrictions and parking bans in place.
“While we are lifting the travel ban, the state of emergency remains in effect for some counties, and we urge people to continue using caution and stay home today if possible to allow crews to do their work,” said Healey. “Our teams continue to be out in full force to support cities and towns after this storm, providing equipment and personnel to help with snow removal and other efforts. We know that there are still many households without power, and the utilities are working hard to assess damage and restore power as quickly and safely as possible. We thank the people of Massachusetts for their patience and caution while we work to get back to normal, and we are especially grateful for all of the workers who continue to be out here around the clock to deliver for our communities.”
At least 350 members of the Massachusetts National Guard were called in to help transport crews and manage supplies.
As of 11:15 a.m. on Tuesday, there are around 251,000 Massachusetts customers still without power, down from 290,000 yesterday.
In Rhode Island, TF Green Airport broke a snowfall record set during the Blizzard of 1978, with a historic 37.9 inches of snow.
[ Updated town-by-town totals: How much snow fell in Mass. during monster blizzard? ]
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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