A determined group of couples plans to go ahead with their Nantucket weddings despite the powerful nor’easter sweeping across the Northeast.
At least 34 weddings are scheduled to take place on Nantucket island in Massachusetts this weekend, according to the Nantucket Current on X.
Their celebrations remain on schedule as the storm moves toward southeastern Massachusetts, bringing potentially life-threatening weather conditions.
The National Weather Service (NWS) placed Nantucket under a high wind warning and high surf advisory at about 7:30 p.m. Friday, as rainfall intensified.
A coastal flood warning is also expected to remain in effect for the island through Monday night, the NWS said.
For Boston couple Maggie Lynch, 29, and Paul Flanagan, 28, the forecast for their Saturday wedding with 165 guests represented the “worst-case scenario.”
“When we picked Nantucket, we joked that as long as this exact thing didn’t happen, we’d be fine, and then, of course, it did,” Lynch told MassLive.
Lynch said Nantucket, a popular fall wedding destination, had an “undeniable magic” that drew the couple to the island.
More than 30 weddings were scheduled on Nantucket (pictured) this weekend as a powerful nor’easter moved across the Northeast US
Nantucket is especially popular for fall weddings, but this year’s major storm suddenly put those celebrations at risk
Flanagan said the couple’s main concern had been the possibility of a “storm big enough to stop people from getting to the island” — a scenario that appeared to be unfolding as the nor’easter arrived.
Wedding planner Karina Crockett said the couple first began expressing concerns about the forecast on Monday.
The priority then became getting as many guests as possible to Nantucket before conditions deteriorated.
The couple and their friends made every effort to reach the island, traveling by ferries and boats.
Some guests took a two-and-a-half-hour boat trip from Hyannis, on Cape Cod’s southern coast, to reach Nantucket.
Crockett described the journey as “very rocky” and said one guest “toughed it out” to make it to the wedding.
According to the outlet, at least 120 of Lynch and Flanagan’s 165 guests had arrived on the island by Thursday.
Additional guests reached Nantucket on Friday, while wedding arrangements continued to change in response to the difficult weather.
The average cost per wedding guest in Nantucket in 2026 is approximately $659, according to the Wedding Report.
Wedding planner Karina Crockett said some guests endured a “very rocky” boat journey to attend the Nantucket wedding
CHECK THIS OUT: Julia’s Crippling Fatigue Was Dismissed as Depression Until a Stethoscope Revealed a Dangerous Condition Often Missed in Women
The nor’easter is expected to bring powerful winds and possible flooding to southeastern Massachusetts over the weekend
Robert Flanagan, Paul’s father, posted on social media that it was ‘windy as hell’ on the island.
He also posted a video of the powerful wind blasting a trio of flags.
In another post, the dad cracked that he couldn’t tell if he was seeing a ‘beautiful sunrise or the first glimpse of the apocalypse.’
Wedding plans on Cape Cod, which is about 30 miles north of Nantucket, have been affected as a result of the incoming storm, as well.
Wedding caterer Olive Chase said that the weather conditions were ‘really hard for the couples’ with scheduled outdoor weddings, according to the Cape Cod Times.
‘I am up to my ears right now,’ Chase told the outlet.
He said some couples had canceled or postponed plans, while others were fortunate enough to find indoor sites and push forward with the planned festivities.
As a whole, millions of people across the Northeast are likely to face power outages and travel disruptions because of the flooding and powerful gusts of wind brought on by the nor’easter.
Cape Cod wedding caterer Olive Chase said the nor’easter was ‘really hard for the couples’
Four to six inches of rain are expected to drill southeastern Massachusetts, Nantucket, Cape Cod, Nantucket and nearby islands
Waves of nearly five feet were seen in the Nantucket Sound around 10pm Friday, according to the Nantucket Inquirer and Mirror.
High speed winds descended on the island starting Tuesday afternoon.
That caused some ferry service to be canceled, which continued leading up to the weekend.
Most boats were canceled on Friday, though the peak of the storm is yet to arrive.
Elsewhere in Massachusetts, some people who live near Cape Cod traveled to the mainland before the storm arrived, according to the Boston Herald.
Southeastern Massachusetts, Nantucket, Cape Cod and nearby islands are expected to get hit with the strongest rain at four to six inches.
The US Coast Guard Northeast District has urged mariners and coastal residents to seek safe harbor as the nor’easter rages.
A nor’easter is a strong storm that forms along the East Coast of the US and is named for the northeast winds that blow over the Mid-Atlantic and New England when a low-pressure system sits over the ocean.
