Storm lays lumber to Greater Lynn

LYNN – After a week of sunny skies and warmer temperatures, the Greater Lynn area was brought back to reality by a weekend Nor’easter that caused trees to fall, power outages, accidents and flooding.Nine hundred and one of the 970 power outages National Grid reported in Essex County Sunday at 7 p.m. were in Lynn, the majority on the outskirts of the Diamond District off Chestnut Street.Essex County reported the highest number of homes without power in the state but National Grid estimated power would be restored to those affected Sunday night.The state Department of Conservation and Recreation closed Revere Beach Boulevard in Revere between Point of Pines and Revere Street due to flooding.As of 8:50 a.m. on Sunday, Swampscott had already received 3.05 inches of rain and Peabody 2.95 inches, with rain falling hard throughout the day. As of 6 a.m. Sunday, Lynn had received 2.05 inches. The National Weather Service expects rainfall of three to six inches in Essex County by this afternoon.The community most heavily affected by the high rainfall totals was Peabody, which had multiple roadways closed on Sunday morning due to flooding, including Canal, Endicott, Essex and Foster streets near downtown. Route 128 southbound before Lowell Street was closed at 2:45 p.m. on Sunday due to flooding and Pierpoint, Roosevelt and Warren streets were added to the list of closed roads at 4:40 p.m.Around 9 p.m. on Saturday night a fallen traffic light near Kappy’s Liquors on Andover Street in Peabody caused damage to two passing vehicles and led to traffic backups in the area.”One car had damage to the roof and the driver’s-side door, and the other had damage to the fender and wheel on the passenger’s side,” Police Sergeant Scott Richards said. “Nobody was cited and nobody was injured, the wind just knocked the light down and they got it out of the way.”Just after midnight on Saturday, a wind gust of 48 mph was reported in Marblehead, the fiercest wind reported in the area and Swampscott Police received two reports of large trees down.Revere Beach and Revere Beach Boulevard were closed at 1 p.m. on Sunday due to a possible storm surge, and rocks and debris were in the roadway.In Saugus, electrical wires and a tree were knocked down across 92 Main St. at 1:20 a.m. on Sunday, and there were reports of trees down on Stillings Road and Sunset Drive at 5:30 a.m. Another caller reported a large tree had been uprooted on Oak Point Road at 1 p.m.The National Weather Service predicts possible storm surges of about two feet during high tide today with possible waves of 15-25 feet, which may result in moderate flooding in local rivers and streams throughout the week. Strong wind gusts are also expected.