Flash floods, wind damage came along with Tuesday storms

A summer of wild weather continued Tuesday as intense storms brought flash flooding, wind damage, and more to various parts of Massachusetts. 

In South Natick, meteorologist Dave Epstein measured 1.27 inches of rainfall. Boston saw 0.88 inches of rain, the fourth-highest amount this month, according to National Weather Service data. Heavy hail was seen in Grafton.

At around 4:30 p.m., meteorologist Pete Bouchard observed that storms had stopped moving south, Instead, they began moving eastward and caused serious flooding. 

That flooding hit Dorchester, where one driver told 7News that his car stalled in a flooded area underneath an overpass. As water seeped into the vehicle, the motorist made the decision to get out and wait for help. Emergency workers later had to push his car to the side of the road.

In Framingham, a “potential microburst” splintered trees and sent them into a home on Spruce Street, according to the city. Multiple streets were closed and drivers faced significant delays. Some residents told Boston 25 News that it could take weeks to clean up their city and get it back to looking normal. 

Adding to the chaos, a water main break caused overnight flooding in the area of Broadway and Hampshire streets in Cambridge, 25 News reported. 

Luckily, Massachusetts residents will get a few days break from the rain. Wednesday is expected to be sunny and clear, while some clouds will roll in on Thursday. Clear skies should return on Friday, and the possibility of thunderstorms returns on Saturday, according to the NWS forecast for its Boston office. 

But one form of extreme weather will give way to another, as brutally hot temperatures are expected to impact the state. Thursday could see a high of 94 degrees, which would be the highest of the month so far. Temperatures in Boston climbed to 91 degrees on July 12 and July 17, according to NWS data. 

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu issued a heat emergency for Thursday and Friday.  A total of 15 city-run community centers will be open as cooling centers on those two days from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and 64 splash pads will be open as well. 

City officials said that, during a heat wave last summer, daily 911 calls to Boston EMS increased by between 15 and 20%.

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