“I urge all of you to drive safely as you commute to your destination. Stopping on snow or ice without skidding requires extra time and distance,” LePage wrote in a news statment. “Drive slowly so you can adjust to changing road conditions. Please remember to keep a safe distance behind other vehicles and give plow trucks plenty of room to operate.”

• Snow to start Thursday morning in southern Maine then move northeast. It’s expected to start after 11 a.m. Thursday in western Maine.
• The National Weather Service expects the heaviest snow to fall Thursday evening.
• There could be 8 to 12 inches of snow on the ground by Friday morning. It’s going to fall about an inch or inch and a half per hour.
• Sleet is possible Friday morning. That’s more likely the closer you are to the coast.
• Temperatures are expected to be in the 20s with 10 to 20 mph winds — gusts up to 30 mph.
• Get updated National Weather Service forecasts for Maine.
• Check SunJournal.com for updates on the weather and how its affecting our lives.
• Share your news and photos by sending it to storm@sunjournal.com. We will publish reader contributions.

What this means for travelling

This is going to be a mess. The heaviest snow is expected during the Thursday evening commute. But sleet can make the Friday morning commute worse.

Here’s what you need to know to plan for safe travelling today:

• 511 Maine is MaineDOT’s map of road conditions. 
• WGME has a statewide list of weather closings and delays. It’s worth checking before you get into the car.
• Speaking of closings, schools are sending students home early Thursday. Expect them to be home Friday. 
• Flying? The Portland Jetport has flight tracking data.  (Their map of airport delays is helpful.) Bangor International Airport has flight status information too.

Did you know that your car’s cruise control could be dangerous in slippery conditions? Refresh your knowledge of winter driving tips from MaineDOT.

Parking bans

For some of us, it’s not enough to avoid driving on the roads. We can’t even park our cars on some city streets. Here’s a list of municipal parking bans so far our area:

• Auburn: 3 p.m. Thursday to 3 p.m. Friday
• Lewiston: 6 p.m. Thursday to noon Friday (parking ban information)
• Lisbon: 8 a.m. Thursday to midnight Friday

Power to the people

Central Maine Power crews are returning to Maine after helping restore power in Pennsylvania. They will be here just in time if heavy snow brings down our power lines.

• If outages occur, CMP urges customers to call the toll-free outage hotline: 1-800-696-1000.
• If you’re going to use a back up generator in a power outage, CMP has generator safety information.
• It’s worth reinforcing safety measures to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning.
• The American Red Cross has tips for preventing and thawing frozen pipes.

Emergency supplies

The Red Cross has a list of what you should have to be ready for a winter storm.

By the way, Friday is Valentine’s Day. Are you ready if the snow scuttles your romantic plans?

Need to Know

The Sun Journal has created a list of Twitter accounts that broadcast useful information for monitoring the weather and road conditions. The accounts include:

• @MaineDot1: Maine Department of Transportation
• @NWSGray: National Weather Service station in Gray
• @MaineTurnpike: Maine Turnpike Authority
• @MaineEMA: Maine Emergency Management Association
• @Mainegov_Alerts: Citizen Alerts from Maine.gov

You can search #MEWX in Twitter for more weather updates.

In addition to these social media accounts, SunJournal.com has updates and shares news on its website, Facebook page and the Twitter account @SunJournal.

The Maine Emergency Management Association has a collection of winter preparation resources.