Nor’easter forecast to bring wet snow, strong winds to Maine

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UPDATE: The slow-moving nor’easter packing wind gusts of up to 50 mph was moving into Maine by daybreak with snow along the coast and a wintery mix inland. (Gillian Graham, Portland Press Herald)

A nor’easter is forecasted to bring up to 12 inches of heavy, wet snow and high winds Tuesday and Wednesday across a swath of Maine.

Snow is expected to start falling Tuesday morning between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. and continue falling until midday Wednesday, according to Jon Palmer, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Gray.

The forecast prompted Gov. Janet Mills to urge state residents to stay off the roads if possible during the storm. State offices will be closed Tuesday.

At the same time, municipal officials across the region announced Monday afternoon that parking bans will be in effect starting Tuesday morning.

Jon Breed, Central Maine Power Co. spokesman, said Monday that the utility company was staging both line and tree-cutting crews across its service territory to be ready for potential outages.

“This winter season has brought Maine several storms of this nature, with fallen trees and vehicle accidents being a common cause for power outages,” Breed said in a statement issued Monday. “With strong winds and wet snow expected, we urge caution if you need to travel on Tuesday and Wednesday as conditions will be hazardous.”

The Maine Emergency Management Agency urged state residents to prepare for the storm’s impact as storm watches across all but northern Maine were expected to be upgraded to winter storm warnings.

MEMA Director Peter Rogers said travelers are urged to take precautions like filling up gas tanks, having an emergency kit and giving plow trucks room on the roads.

In the event of power outages, Rogers said warming and charging centers operated by cities and towns could open up. Information about those centers can be found by dialing 211, or on MEMA’s website.

Nor’easters generally form in the southeastern or mid-Atlantic region of the United States, and as they move northeast they tend to gain peak strength off the coast of New England and Canada’s Maritime provinces. They routinely bring heavy rain or snow and gale force winds to the region.

They are not uncommon in mid-March. In 2018, a mammoth nor’easter dumped between 1 and 2 feet of snow across the state.

Palmer said this year’s storm is expected to bring more snow and wind to the coast along with minor coastal flooding.

Following the storm, daytime highs are expected in the 40s, he said. And when the next storm system reaches Maine by Friday, which is the first day of spring, it’s expected to bring mostly rain.

As of 5 p.m. Monday, Auburn School Department and Regional School Unit 52 based in Turner declared a remote instruction day Tuesday. Many cities and towns have posted municipal building closures for Tuesday and parking bans for the duration of the storm and post-storm cleanup.

Kennebec Journal reporter Jessica Lowell contributed to this report.