Massachusetts residents prepare for major mid-March snowstorm

BOSTON — With more than a foot of snow expected across most of Massachusetts Tuesday, many people are preparing for what they hope is the last storm of the winter.

A blizzard watch has been issued for most of eastern Massachusetts, and coastal communities are especially concerned about flooding.

“It hasn't happened this year yet. Typically we get like one flood a winter. So this may be it. We thought we'd get off scot-free, but this might be the time,” Scituate resident Jill Ulery said.

>>FORECAST: Serious winter storm expected to hit Tuesday

Those concerns also extended to the Coast Guard office in Boston, where warnings have been issued for boaters.

“If you have a lot of snow coming in, there's potential for visibility to drop, you get the whiteout effect and then hazardous navigation for just being out on the water,” Petty Officer 2nd Class Edward Nygren Edward Nygren told FOX25.

Winter storms like this are nothing new for many residents, but the warm weather experienced across the area earlier this month had many people thinking the worst was behind us.

>>RELATED: Swapping snow shoes for golf clubs during wintermission

"I've lived in the northeast my entire life so it's not out of the ordinary. But with the warmer weather, I was really hoping for spring,” Kelly Zaccardi said.

MEMA is preparing to keep the roads cleared, with mechanics working on hundreds of pieces of equipment to get them ready for the road.

“Sometimes even when there's a lot of plows out on the road, we can have trouble keeping up with that. So trying to keep people off the road is number one and again, making sure people are aware of power outages,” a MEMA spokesperson said.

Cox Media Group