>> adam: you're watching the news station. >> kim: 7news. >> christa: 7news is in storm force mode this friday morning. a winter blast just arriving in new england. it looks pretty wet, though, right now. it will change over soon, closing schools and keeping road crew busy overnight. >> sarah: plows out all night treating roads, like route 128 in lexington. cities trying to stay ahead for this storm. >> christa: and you're in nor a tough morning commute as the rain and then the heavy snow begins the fall across new england. we'll be watching with our fast track tracker. >> this is 7news "today in new england." >> christa: hey, at least it's friday. >> sarah: that's the good news. >> christa: maybe a long weekend for some of you. start off your weekend early. e-mail christa delcamp. >> sarah: and i'm sarah french. we're waking up to parts of rain

quickly turn over to snow. we have reporters spread out all across the area. our traffic tracker is on the road for an up-close look as conditions start to increase. we begin with our team of meteorologists. first up, let's welcome back jeremy reiner. >> jeremy: before we get to the weather, how are you been? i miss you. >> sarah: we miss you. are you enjoying sleeping? that's what we want to know? >> i wouldn't know right now, but overgetting sleep has been nice, but good to be back this morning. we have a winter storm warning. i thought i'd bring some goodies with me, snow and rain. rain in the city of boston. there's the snow. the rain/snow line has been crashing into metro west over the last 45 minutes to an hour. so we have snow 495, worcester hills, southern new hampshire, and this will find its way to the coastline, including the city of boston, within the next hour or two. and once that happens, then party is over because road conditions will go downhill quickly during the morning commute if you have a morning

for much of the morning. from this storm system that's been off to our south and organizing, we'll move up the eastern seaboard and help to make its own cold air. temps right now running in the upper 30s. so rain in boston. there is your storm time line. again, it quickly goes over to snow in the city and it snows steadily up until the middle part of the afternoon. further south, south coast, south shore, it does flip over to snow, but it's a slower process. so because of that, your snowfall potential down through the canal and out onto the cape is not as great as it is in metro boston. i can talk. really. give me chance. 5 to 8 inches of snow. thinking 6 in the city of boston. as you head out on the outer route 2 corridor, fitchburg, 5 to 8 inches. south of town, 4 to 5 inches in the upper cape and east of hyannis, out toward brewster and chatham, 1 to 3 inches of snow. chris lambert, your turn.

>> chris: j.r., good morning. sleep deprivation is a tough thing this time of day, right? fair travel conditions through about 5:00, 6:00 out there worcester, fitchburg. we do have rain. you have to slow down for some of the wet weather we have right now, but the big difference is once we flip over to snow, which we're beginning to see snow mixing in as close as natick, out through worcester, once you transition over to snow and that snow becomes heavy, road conditions going downhill quick between 6:00, 7:00, 8:00. by 9:00 we're dealing with poor travel conditions, boston metro area down through metro west and beginning to creep in to the south shore here. give it a couple hours. once you flip over to heavy snow, down from plymouth through taunton, late morning through the afternoon, poor travel conditions. out through worcester county because the snow is beginning to taper off. western mass. by 5:00 p.m., predominantly the storm is over with the exception of down across the cape and the islands. there could still be some slick

plymouth county, the cape and the islands. i do see improving conditions, at least on a lot of the main roads late this afternoon and into the early evening hours. boston out through worcester, you know, you get that 6, 7 inches of the heavy wet snow. if you have dinner plans tonight, mostly wet main roads will be the case. this storm, temperatures 33, 34 degrees, one inch of water equals about 8 inches of snow, so that's the heavy, dense snow that's tough to move. last winter we were more like 20 to 1. we had that huge fluff factor. not the case this go around. we'll track that wet heavy snow through the morning into the early afternoon. more on forecast to come. >> christa: sounds like if you're headed out, now is the time to get on the roads before things change over. and after that point, of course, road crews will be out in full force. they will be clearing the roads throughout the storm. >> sarah: let's send it send it to 7

looks like rain where you russia kris, right? >> kris: well, not so far. we've seen a little changeover here. here's 128 in lexington northbound, southbound lanes. northbound lane closest to me. when we left the station about 3:30 a.m., it was, sarah and christa, all rain. but we've steadily seen a wintry mix, a crossover into snow. the stuff that's falling now is predominantly snow. we've also noticed the temperatures have been dropping, so when i left this morning it was close to 40 degrees. i'm like, gosh, how is it going to snow? all of a sudden temperatures started plunging. raindrops turned into snowflakes. in lexington we're seeing primarily snowflakes at this point. no accumulations at this point because it hasn't been falling wrong enough. the ground still has to get colder for it to start sticking. good news is traffic is moving smoothly, traffic is light. if you have to get out today, you're in good shape on route 128 northbound and southbound in lexington. that's the story from the travel plaza in lexington.

new england." >> sarah: thanks, kris. already switching to snow over there. the storm will hit as commuters are just hitting the roads this morning. let's get a look at conditions on the mass pike with marshall hook in our traffic tracker. good morning, marshall. >> marshall: good morning to you. much like kris said, it's rain right now, but we may be starting to see that thrift because as reliable as the car thermometer, is we've seen it go from 39 degrees to 36 degrees in just about the last 15 minutes or so. so that's the temperature drop that's going to turn this rain into snow. you can see right now it is still just rain out here on the mass pike as we go through brighton. so, yeah, if you want to get to work really, really early, go ahead and hit the road now. you'll avoid all of the snow. with that snow coming in later on when you get that water at the base of it, it's going to be a sloppy mess as soon as we start to get any accumulation. good news in the early going,

live from behind the wheel of the traffic tracker. marshall hook, 7news. >> danielle: thanks, marshall. good morning, everyone. so far roads looking pretty good. definitely be careful, especially other the bridges and overpaces. zakim bridge, leverett connector, no issues yet this morning. let's go to the maps. 93 southbound heading into boston, route 1 looking good so far. south of town from braintree into boston, that drive just ten minutes. so no issues, at least not yet this morning. south of town all green. so no delays yet. the pike into boston from framingham, not a bad drive. let's take a look at those drive times if you're getting ready to head out the door. ten minutes on the expressway from braintree into boston. into town on the pike from 128, 12 minutes. 93 southbound, 128 to the zakim bridge, that drive 11 minutes. give yourself more time than this. be careful. back to you, guys. >> christa: danielle, thank you. so one thing we'll be keeping a close eye on this morning or at least jeremy and chris are is

>> sarah: that transition is happening south and west of boston. nicole oliverio is live in milford with a look at the conditions there. >> nicole: sarah, we can tell you, we just saw that changeover about 15 minutes ago. it was purely raining our entire ride here, but we're just starting to see that changeover as we mention now to the snow. but really the small flakes. they're still wet, so as soon as it's hitting the ground, it's still hitting as if you were driving in the rain. the good news is if you knew about the storm, you planned on leaving early, it shouldn't be too bad. we've seen a couple sanders drive by, so they're getting ready. they weren't sapping the roads here just yet. starting to see the changeover here. milford expecting to get about 5 to 8 inches. for now that's the latest live in milford, nicole oliverio, 7news "today in new england." >> christa: nicole, thanks. we'll be with you all morning long, but if you can't be in front of the tv, you can always get the latest weather updates

or tablet apps or by logging on the whdh.com. >> sarah: 4:38 right now. breaking overnight, firefighters in weston are investigating the cause of a house fire. crews managed to extinguish the flames early this morning. there are reports that a woman in her 80s had to be treated for smoke inhalation. her condition is not known at this time. >> christa: still ahead, chris christie set to get a major endorsement today. which lawmaker, massachusetts lawmaker, as we take a look at jeb bush on the campaign trail with his mother, barbara. we also have a full wrap-up of all the candidates coming your way from new hampshire. >> sarah: and then there were two. hillary clinton and bernie sanders a uferling -- offering their final pitches before voters in the granite state head to the polls. also our storm form coverage continues. we're keeping an eye on the roads, swell. j.r., what's coming up for us? >> jeremy: a messy morning, sarah. rain will change over to snow. once that happen, road conditions will quickly deteriorate through the morning hours and through the middle

however, it does improve late this afternoon and this evening. storm time line and snowfall

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wegmans family pack. we do it because we're family too. >> sarah: welcome back. we are in storm force mode. depending on where you are, there is just rain right now, but we know this will all hit during the morning commute. >> christa: when i headed out this morning and felt the air, i

how are we going to get snow with this? but j.r., i watched you at 11:00 to get my j.r. fix. you were explaining this storm is coming up with its own cold air enclosed in it. >> chris: it is. sometimes we have to rely on arctic air for the big storm, but other times, like this morning, the storm itself, i've got. this i'll make my own cold air, thank you very much. that's what's happening right now, that process of turning the rain over the snow is a result of the storm generating the cold air. so we have a winter storm warning in effect for the areas shaded in pink, including the city of boston. that means that six inches of snow is on the table. it's likely to happen for the city of boston, as well as metro west, worcester hills. so here is that rain/snow line. kris anderson noting that it flipped over to snow in lexington that. will work toward the city of boston and eventually down the south shore. we have snow back through metro west and the worcester hills. the snow continues all the way

so if you have travel plans out of boston heading toward metro new york through hartford and waterbury, it's going to be a slow go down there, as well. for them the storm peels out of there faster than us. where is that system? it's coming off the outer banks of north carolina. this will scoot east of the cape during the day. in doing so, it will allow the rain the change over the snow. so boston right now at 37. norwood 37. plymouth at 39. even when the changeover happens, i still think the temp in the city will be about 34, 35. that will slow down accumulating snow, but with time the snow will start to come down at a greater intensity, which will drag the cold air out of the cloud and begin to overwhelm the ground with accumulating snow. at that time, that's when travel conditions will become quite poor. so you have a slow morning with the snow, steady and occasionally heavy at times. that's happening through first part of the afternoon. and then as we step toward the latter half of the afternoon and the evening commute, then the snow tapers off and winds down.

bit later out on the cape and the islands. snowfall forecast, no significant changes since last night in metro boston. chris and i pulled the 5 to 8 band closer to the south coast and changed the number a little bit in buzzards bay. north of town, generally 5 to 8 inches. merrimack valley, 495 corridor, outer route 2 corridor 4 to 5. city of boston, again 6 inches of snow. worcester about 6 to 7 inches of snow. down through the south coast about 4 to 5 inches of heavy, wet snow. now, again, wind will not be an overly powerful issue today. it's not a nor'easter, but because it's heavy, wet snow, that might lead the power loss. chris, that's your grab. here, j.r. thanks. we're talking about half a foot of heavy, wet snow combined with a 10 to 20mph wind. when you have that clumpy snow clinging to big tree branches out there, you can get some of them to snap off thanks to the weight of it.

outages with the heavy, wet snow clinging to tree branches. we don't expect it to be a major problem. if the winds were a lot stronger, i think it would be a different story. we could get system of those scattered power outages. so rain going over to snow this morning. of course, that snow will be heavy at times. tapering off between 2:00 and 5:00. 1:00, 2:00 into worcester county. in the city of boston, 3:00, as late as 5:00 downthrough the cape and the islands. temperatures running into the lower to middle 30s. forecast for tonight, partly cloudy and cold. temperatures falling back into the teens in a lot of the suburbs thanks to the fresh snowpack on the ground, about 24 degrees into the city of boston. then the saturday forecast looking good. nice winter's day. heading out sledding with the kids, skiing locally, blue hill, nashoba valley, wachusett, they're going to love the snowstorm here. i think we'll have partial sunshine tomorrow with seasonable conditions. temperatures running mid to upper 30s. so should be an enjoyable start for winter sports here in southern new england over the weekend.

north, partly sunny on saturday, clouds and sun on sunday, even across central new england and northern new england, conditions looking okay this weekend. they've been making some snow with some cold air at night in the past. i know it's been a struggle here lately, but they have some cold air last night and they'll have some cold air going into the weekend, especially at night. storm is possible late monday into tuesday. something to keep an eye on. overall theme, though, more seasonable in terms of temperatures. guys? >> christa: let's head out to the records with 7's marshall hook. it looks mainly wet there. maybe a few flakes falling on the turnpike, marshall? >> marshall: yeah, we are definitely making that transition over to the snowflakes. in fact, i would say it's more snow than rain at this point in the air. on the roadways, though, still nothing but a lot of moisture. it's going to take a bit before there's any sort of accumulation, and once it gets there, with all of that water on the roadways, you're going to be

treacherous driving conditions. in case you had any doubt as to whether or not they were treating these roads, you can clearly see from all of the very bright yellow lights in front of me, they are out here right now sanding, salting these roads. they are getting ready for the snow, and again, the snow is beginning to fall out here on the mass pike. live from behind the wheel of the traffic tracker, marshall hook, 7 news. >> christa: marshall, thank you. just ahead on this early edition of "today in new england." 7news going one on one with donald trump, what the republican presidential hopeful is saying about our poll showing his lead in new hampshire. >> sarah: and the governors come off. bernie sanders and hillary clinton in their first one-on-one debit just days

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>> christa: welcome back. 4:51. 7's kris anderson is out there along the roadways to gauge conditions for you inches be it's in the a snow emergency. it is a snow day, so kids, you get an extra day off heading into the weekend. of course, we'll be with you all morning long as the storm moves in. and if you can't be in front of your tv if you have to head out, just remember you can get the latest weather updates on the go with our 7news mobile and tablet apps or by logging on the whdh.com. >> sarah: with four days to go until the new hampshire primary, here's what to watch today. governor charlie baker is expected to endorse chris christie's run for the white

christie stumped for baker during his run for governor in 2014. also the former head of the naacp will reportedly endorse bernie sanders. the endorsement is a potential boost for the vermont senator, who has struggled to connect with african american voters in the race against hillary clinton. and hillary clinton and bernie sanders are going their separate ways this morning after the very first one-on-one debate of the 2016 primary season. >> christa: each of them going into this showdown with a common goal, proving who is the real progressive democrat. here's 7's tracie potts with the latest. >> enough is enough. if you've got something to say, say it directly. >> reporter: hillary clinton pushing back on the idea that she can't be tough on wall street because she's taken so much money from them. >> you will not find that i ever changed a view or a vote because of any donation that i ever received. >> what we need to do is to stand up to the big money interests. i am very proud to be the only

have a super pac, who is not raising huge sums of money. >> reporter: they debated paying for campaigns and paying for free college and free health care. >> i do not accept the belief that the united states of america can't do that. >> the numbers just don't add up from what senator sanders has been proposing. >> reporter: on foreign policy, the democrats disagreed on how quickly to normalize relations with iran. >> you don't just rush in, here i am, let's talk, let's make a deal. >> those are exactly the people you have to talk to and negotiate with. >> reporter: united in principle but drawing distinctions on how to get things done. the democrat's next debate is next thursday in washington. new england." >> sarah: on the republican side, donald trump is hoping for a decisive win in new hampshire. in a one-on-one interview with 7news, trump says he won't back down from his stance on immigration and promises to work with people on both sides of the

>> my whole theme is make america great again. we have to do something. we have to strengthen our country. sometimes it's not politically correct. i was a businessman all my life. recent articles say, "trump's a world-class businessman." has the, i have an obligation to get along with democrats and republicans. i'm a unifier. a lot of people don't understand this. >> sarah: trump will hold a town hall meeting in londonderry this afternoon. he'll then fly to south carolina for an event there tonight. >> christa: and for the rest of the republicans, there are some high stakes here. a lot on the line as voters prepare to head to the polls up in new hampshire. 7's jennifer eagan has more from the g.o.p. candidates this morning. >> we don't allow that. >> jennifer: barbara bush gave her son a boost on the campaign trail today. >> mom, my crowd sizes normally aren't this large. >> jennifer: during a town hall meeting in derry, bush told the carouse as florida's former governor, he has a proven record, something marco rubio

>> two gifts senators that can deliver a great speech. very talented people, don't get me wrong, one is a close friend, but what in their background would suggest they could make a tough decision? >> jennifer: new jersey governor chris christie also went after rubio. >> this is a guy that has only done one thing in the united states senate, write an amnesty bill. >> jennifer: rubio pointed to his work for the v.n.a. >> this is about the future, not the past. >> jennifer: our tracking poll shows rubio gaining, bumping cruz out of second place. >> i realize if momentum were measured by the media, marco rubio would already be the republican nominee. >> ohio governor john kasich is closing in on 100 events in the granite state. >> wouldn't bit great if you can run for president like you run for class president where you just tell people what you're for instead of spending your time trashing somebody else.

more events on tap later today as the republican candidates go after this state's coveted undecided voters. in derry, new hampshire, jennifer eagan, 7news "today in new england." >> christa: coming up on the news station this morning, on just one station, andy hiller will be live with the latest tracking poll numbers out of the new hampshire primary. his report is coming your way at 6:45. of course, this will be after the bernie sanders and clinton debate, so that should be interesting to watch. >> sarah: all right, switching gears now, we're talking about the weather. j.r., in a lot of places we're already seeing rain turn into snow now. >> jeremy: exactly. the rain/snow line is right through the city of boston. stepping outside the studios, that's going back and forth between rain and snow. that will happen in the city and working down the south shore. snow established through metro west, worcester hills. and even in the city of boston, snow takes over. and once that happen, then the road conditions will begin to deteriorate through the morning hours. the amount of snow on the way, a large area of 5 to 8 inches of snow including the city of

i think downtown boston and out toward j.p. and hyde park probably around six inches of snow and then either side of that will be a band of 4 to 5 inches of snow out toward fitchburg as well as orange and then the other direction down through the south coast and then out on to the cape, it's rain for the morning and then it flips over to snow by lunchtime in the afternoon out toward brewster and chatham. this will be a heavy wet snow. it's tough to shovel and plow and move around. so bend at the knees. >> sarah: thanks, j.r. we have much more storm force coverage ahead coming up at 5:00. >> christa: stay with us.

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