Mass. Weather: Strong storm will bring heavy rain and whipping winds on Wednesday

A powerful winter storm heading toward Massachusetts late Wednesday is expected to bring heavy rains and strong winds to the Bay State, according to the National Weather Service.

The storm is expected to drop between 2 and 3 inches of rain across most of the state, with whipping wind gusts of up to 60 miles per hour possible near the coast.

Forecasters expect the precipitation to arrive in two rounds: One round will extend late Tuesday into Wednesday morning before the heaviest rain arrives later Wednesday into Wednesday evening. “Confidence is fairly high” that much of the state will see between 1.5 and 2.5 inches of rain, with as much as 3 inches possible in some areas, the weather service said.

But it remains to be seen which areas will be hardest hit by the rain, which could lead to “localized urban and poorly drained street flooding,” forecasters wrote.

Ahead of the storm’s arrival, temperatures could rise to the upper 50s or lower 60s Wednesday afternoon and into the evening before falling back to the 30s or even 20 degrees at higher elevations.

Starting Thursday, forecasters are forecasting a calm period of weather through the weekend, with stormy conditions prevailing on Thursday, giving way to below-average temperatures on Saturday.