Snow continued to pile up Monday afternoon from a winter storm that is bringing “blizzard-like conditions” to the region, forced the closure of most schools, but did not stop the MBTA, Boston’s Logan International Airport, or some government offices from operating.
Eight inches were on the ground in much of the state by early afternoon, weather service records showed. Some towns in Middlesex and Worcester counties had more than 14 inches by 1:30 p.m. Ten inches were measured at Logan Airport in Boston.
As the storm intensified in certain areas Monday afternoon, the National Weather Service in Taunton released a flash-freeze warning for southeast Massachusetts, the Cape, and islands. As temperatures drop rapidly into the teens, slushy conditions or standing water on roads will freeze quickly, creating hazardous driving conditions, forecasters warned.
In the South Shore town of Weymouth, a woman in her 50s was fatally injured when she was struck by a snowplow on Tara Drive around 10 a.m., Norfolk District Attorney Michael Morrissey’s office said.
The name of the woman is being withheld pending notification of next of kin, said Morrissey spokesman David Traub.
The circumstances of the woman’s death remain under investigation by Morrissey’s office and Weymouth police, Traub said.
The storm started in the early hours Monday and is expected to continue through the night. It will not be as bad as last week’s historic blizzard, said Alan Dunham, a weather service meteorologist. But wind gusts up to 35 miles per hour will fan the snow to create brief blizzard-like conditions and reduce visibility to a quarter-mile, Dunham said.
Heavy and rapid snowfall will continue intermittently through the evening, with up to 3 inches accumulating within an hour at times, Dunham said.
Across the region, the MBTA is operating, but transportation officials warned of weather-related delays.
“Across the system we are experiencing delays,’’ said MBTA General Manager Beverly Scott Monday. “But the core services are operating. Everybody is rolling.’’
Scott said the storm was causing some problems, but nothing close to the conditions last week when a historic blizzard led Governor Charlie Baker to order a driving ban and the shutdown of the MBTA.
“There is not going to be any cessation of service,’’ Scott said, stressing that commuters should check the MBTA’s website for updates on their specific route and parking availability across the system. “It’s very dynamic.’’
The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning Monday morning that will remain in effect until 1 a.m. Tuesday.
Dunham said Bostonians should expect “upwards of a foot’’ of snow on Monday as will most of the state from the Berkshire Mountains east. Lesser amounts are expected along the Route 3 and Route 24 corridor and down to Cape Cod, he said.
Dunham said temperatures will moderate to about 30 degrees Monday afternoon, but will then be followed by a dramatic drop to just 4 degrees in Boston – with wind chills dropping below zero.
“There is some really cold air tonight,’’ Dunham said.
The cold will continue Tuesday, as crowds gather to watch the Patriots victory parade from Prudential Center to City Hall, starting at 11 a.m. It will be about 15 degrees at that time, Dunham said, with wind gusts up to 20 miles per hour making it feel like zero.
“Anybody venturing outside should make sure they dress in layers with mittens, hats, and scarves,” Dunham said.
Some snow is possible later in the week, he said.
Transportation Secretary Stephanie Pollack said transportation systems across the state will see some delays, and an occasional shutdown of a road when snowfall is faster than snowplows. But, she stressed, if commuters plan ahead for their individual journeys and are patient, they should get safely to where they want to go.
“We are doing a pretty good job of keeping up with it,’’ Pollack said in a telephone interview. “People are just going to have to be careful… and patient.’’
Pollack said Baker held a conference call with top managers of the various state agencies with direct roles to play responding to the storm.
“This is the second storm of our administration, but it’s very different from last week’s storm. We didn’t even consider a driving ban or even closing the MBTA,’’ she said. “It’s a tough winter storm, but our job is to keep Massachusetts open for business, and we are going to do our best to do that today.’’
State Police reported snow-covered, slippery roads across the state. A tractor trailer jackknifed on the Massachusetts Turnpike in Charlton, but is not impacting traffic, State Police said.
In greater Boston, multiple spinouts were reported with the majority taking place on Interstate 95 and Route 128. Interstate 93 in Dorchester and the hill on Route 9 in Wellesley are nearly impassible, State Police said.
Speeds on the entire Pike have been lowered to 40 miles an hour.
Around 2:30 p.m., MassDOT had deployed 3,207 pieces of equipment across the state and about 414 pieces of equipment in the Boston area. The zipper lane on the Southeast Expressway is closed Monday.
Baker has ordered state offices to open Monday and Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh has declared a snow emergency in Boston, meaning all vehicles parked on major roadways after 8 a.m. will be subject to towing.
Walsh, in a move followed by a large number of school systems in the greater Boston area, ordered the Boston public schools closed Monday but the Boston Centers for Youth and Families will open from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. to provide child care to children ages 7 and older.
Boston City Hall is open.
Walsh said on Monday that he expects Boston’s schools will be open on Tuesday, and that it will be up to the parents to make sure their children end up in the classroom and not in downtown Boston where the city will host a victory parade for the Patriots.
Walsh also asked Bostonians to look after each other, and especially the homeless, during storm conditions that can cause hypothermia or frostbite.
All Boston Public Health Commision shelters will be open for daytime hours Monday.
Several universities, including Boston University, UMass Boston, and Suffolk University, announced closures Monday.
Officials at Logan International Airport said many airlines had canceled flights and advised travelers to check with their airlines. They said crews would be working throughout the storm to keep runaways open, unless conditions make snow removal unsafe.
US District Court in Boston opened at 10 a.m., but the jury selection for the trial of accused Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev is postponed until Tuesday at 9 a.m. Both the Worcester and Springfield federal courts are closed and judges in Boston postponed some hearings.
Massachusetts courthouses — except the appellate courts — opened Monday but were ordered to close by 2:30 p.m. On Monday some trials and hearings were postponed, officials said. Four murder trials in Suffolk County were postponed until Tuesday as was the Bristol Superior Court murder trial of former New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez and a hearing in the Philip D. Chism case, charged with murdering Danvers High School teacher Colleen Ritzer.
City officials said trash collection will occur Monday, though pickup will start at 5 a.m. to get ahead of the storm.
Boston is opening its municipal parking lots to neighborhood residents for long-term parking during the storm. The Boston Transportation Department has worked with private parking lot and garage owners to secure 15,500 free or discounted parking spaces for Boston residents, city officials said.
Stephen Smith of the Globe Staff contributed to this report. John R. Ellement can be reached at ellement@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @JREbosglobe.
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