A winter storm that cut a large swath across the country dumped mostly sleet and freezing rain Tuesday on the Pine Tree State.

The storm made it slow going for morning commuters, but Maine apparently was spared from numerous power outages. At noon, Central Maine Power reported 1,442 outages in Cumberland, Lincoln, Sagadahoc and York counties.

“CMP actively monitored the storm and was prepared ahead of time,” CMP corporate communications manager Emily Spencer wrote in an email. “We ensured both internal and external resources were ready to respond to potential outages, including communication with in-state contractors and tree crews, and working closely with local and county EMAs.”

She added that CMP is also preparing for the possibility of another snowstorm Friday.

National Weather Service meteorologist Margaret Curtis said the sleet made this snowstorm a bit interesting to forecast.

“Really, the tough thing was sleet versus snow,” she said. “Sleet is much more dense than snow so what might fall as a half inch” would be closer to three inches if it were fluffy snow. “Overall, we are seeing the total amounts are slightly lower.”

She said the storm cleared out a couple hours faster than they thought, and now local forecasters are keeping an eye on Thursday-Friday’s event.

“It does look mostly like snow, but there is more to this one,” she said. “That warm air is lurking, and any time we can get that anywhere near, we do run the risk of getting that more dense sleet than the fluffy snow.”

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