LIVERMORE — The storm that dumped heavy snow across western and southern Maine on Wednesday delighted ski resorts but frustrated drivers, including a state lawmaker who lost control of his vehicle.
At 9:15 a.m., Rep. Matt Peterson, 32, D-Rumford, was driving a 2007 Toyota Camry east on Route 108 to a meeting in Augusta, when he lost control of the car, according to Androscoggin County Sheriff’s Deputy Craig MacMillan.
The Camry slid off the road and broke a utility pole in half, he said.
“We had live wires down for quite some time,” MacMillan said.
He said Peterson did not appear to be injured, but due to a previous spinal injury that left him wheelchair bound at the age of 18, NorthStar Ambulance of Livermore took Peterson to a Lewiston hospital as a precaution.
“He was lively and talkative,” the deputy said.
According to a weather service bulletin, snow began falling before 6 a.m. Two hours later, heavy snow had moved into most of the forecast area.
Sunday River Ski Resort spokeswoman Darcy Morse said the Newry ski area was expecting up to 16 inches from the storm.
“In fact, we opened the Nordic center today,” Morse said by e-mail of the resort’s cross country ski Outdoor Center. A thaw closed the center on Jan. 3.
Mount Abram Family Ski Resort in Greenwood had 5 inches of snow by noon with more than 10 inches expected overall, Kevin Rosenberg, marketing and sale director, said by email.
“It is snowing and we are loving it!” Rosenberg said.
By about 1 p.m., Lewiston led Androscoggin County with 12.5 inches that fell at a rate of 2.5 inches an hour between noon and 1 p.m., according to a public information statement from the National Weather Service in Gray.
Driving “is absolutely lousy,” MacMillan, the Androscoggin County deputy, said late Wednesday morning.
“I was following a semi and it just disappeared. You can’t see anything.”
“I was on Blake Road in Turner earlier and there was 14 inches on it,” MacMillan said. “Route 4 has a good 7 to 8 inches on it and traffic is going about 20 to 30 mph, which is good.”
-
- Rumford Public Works crewman Buddy Tidswell removes snow from Congress Street on Wednesday afternoon in Rumford.
-
- Exchange Street in downtown Rumford was temporarily blocked during Wednesday’s snowstorm as Public Works crews clearing Congress Street and sidewalks piled snow there.
-
- Rumford Public Works crewman Buddy Tidswell temporarily piles snow on Exchange Street during Wednesday’s snowstorm while removing snow with a bucket loader on Congress Street in Rumford.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.