FARMINGTON — Winter roared into western Maine and New Hampshire on Saturday, felling trees and downing power lines with high winds and, in the mountains, heavy wet snow.

More than 70,000 power outages were reported throughout Northern New England due to an offshore nor’easter that brought the first heavy snow of the season to the White Mountains in Maine and New Hampshire, according to the Associated Press.

Mount Washington, Crawford Notch and others in New Hampshire reported receiving at least 10 inches of snow.

Public Service Co. of New Hampshire, the largest utility in the state, reported about 42,000 customers without power as of early Saturday afternoon.

Out-of-state line crews were being brought in by PSCNH to help restore power, especially in the hardest hit area of western New Hampshire, according to company spokesman Matt Chagnon.

In Maine, by the storm’s peak at 2:45 p.m., more than 18,000 customers were without power, said Central Maine Power Co. dispatcher Dave Phifer.

John Carroll of CMP said the company, which operates more than 25,000 miles of power lines and other facilities that deliver
electricity to 80 percent of Maine’s population, called crews throughout its service area in to help restore power.

Additional contractors
are working to clear fallen trees and limbs and repair downed lines, he said.

“The company
expects to restore power to most customers by late (Saturday night), although some
customers in mid-coast counties and in northern portions of Somerset and
Franklin counties are likely to be without power until (Sunday),” Carroll said.

Firefighters and CMP linemen in Androscoggin, Cumberland, Franklin, Oxford and Somerset counties were extremely busy throughout the day, as were emergency dispatchers who sent them to handle numerous complaints of trees and limbs on wires and burning, or utility poles and power lines flattened by falling trees.

Drivers from Farmington to West Paris had to weave around trees — both live and dead — that toppled onto roadways.

In Auburn, at about
6 p.m., firefighters were sent to a residence on Johnson Road to monitor a tree
branch that had caught fire after striking a powerline. The branch was found
burning in a driveway on top of the downed wire, but not near any buildings,
according to dispatchers. Officials notified CMP to come and assist at the
scene.

There were no reports of serious damage or injuries from the storm that dumped nearly 6 inches of snow on Eustis and 2 inches of rain on Bridgton by 9:27 a.m. Saturday, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Jim Hayes in Gray.

There were no reports of flooding, according to Hayes and emergency dispatchers in Paris, Farmington and Gray.

Mount Washington recorded the highest wind gust at 105 mph, Hayes said.

In Maine, Rangeley topped the highest gust list at 52 mph by 1:27 p.m, followed by Sanford, Brunswick, Portland and Auburn-Lewiston at 50 mph and 47 mph, respectively, according to NWS reports.

Phifer said that by 4:45 p.m., linemen had whittled the 18,300 peak power outages down to 14,000.

“So, we have made progress,” Phifer said. “We started to get a lot of calls by 10 a.m., because early on, there was wet snow in the mountains. Our Skowhegan and Farmington service centers, along with Bridgton, saw most of the heavy snow, but now Skowhegan is where the wind is,” he said.

Hayes said gusting winds were expected to die down by 7 p.m. Saturday.

Linemen will work through the night to restore power, Phifer said.

Mount Washington picked up more than 18 inches of snow, whereas Sugarloaf Ski Resort spokesman Ethan Austin said more than a foot fell on the Carrabassett Valley ski hill.

The resort, which opens for the winter at 8:30 a.m. Sunday, recorded 8 inches of snow at the base and drifts topping 2 feet at the top of the SuperQuad lift.

Austin said it was “incredibly windy” on the mountain all day Saturday, with “lots of power outages in the valley.”

“We’re certainly excited to have all of the new snow, but we’re even more excited to have some good snowmaking temperatures back,” said Rich Wilkinson, Sugarloaf’s director of mountain operations.

Meteorologist Hayes agreed.

He said the storm would bump Fahrenheit temperatures from the 50s back to the season normal of the mid-30s for the mountains and 40s along the coast.

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Rich “Crusher” Wilkinson, Sugarloaf’s director of mountain operations, makes some turns in 12 inches of new snow at the Carrabassett Valley ski hill on Saturday. The resort opens at 8:30 a.m. Sunday. Skiing and riding for expert skiers and riders only on opening day, will be available on Tote Road, with lift access on the SuperQuad. Spokesman Ethan Austin said snow coverage will be variable and unmarked hazards may exist. Some walking may be required. Lift ticket prices will be $25 for all ages on Sunday.

Snow piled up outside Gepetto’s Restaurant at Sugarloaf/USA ski area in Carrabassett Valley on Saturday.