A massive winter storm is expected to begin hitting Massachusetts tonight, dumping up to a foot or more of snow in some areas, while whipping the coast with powerful winds and driving rains, forecasters predict.

    “It's got a little bit of everything,” William Babecock, a meteologist（气象学家）at the National Weather Service in Taunton, said of the post-Christmas storm that brought snowstorm conditions to the Ohio Valley before heading east with its mixed bag of snow, sleet, and rain.

     State Highway Administrator Frank De Paola said more than 4,000 states and snowplows（扫雪车）and salt spreaders were ready to make the roads safer for holiday travelers.

    “MassDOT will be fully staffed and will be ready to handle this,” De Paola said, nothing that the storm, which should bring snow to most of the state except the Cape and Island before turning into rain tomorrow, is Massachusetts' first significant snow storm of this winter season.

    “There have been events where we have had pretty much freezing, icing concerns, which we have treated with chemicals.But this is the first big event that will call for plowing,” he said.

     A high wind watch has been issued for southeastern Massachusetts, including Cape Cod, Forecasters say the wind could reach 60 mph, possibly bringing down power lines.

    In Worcester, some were busy for severer by buying rock salt,shovels and windshield wash,Barrows Hardware president Brain Barrow said.He called the volume（总量）of customers at his Webster Street store very steady on Wednesday morning, “You do get that supermarket effect for sure,”he said of shoppers stocking supplies before a storm.

     There were no flight delays or cancellations at Logan International Airport in Boston as of day,” Right now, everything's running normally.” airport spokesman Richard Walsh said.But Walsh said as the day progressed, travelers should contact their airlines directly to check the status of their flights.