Officials in a number of area cities and towns say they are ready with a warm place as brutal cold descends on Maine, including the Lewiston’s Alter L/A Emergency Warming Center at 70 Horton St.

“We’re always ready,” Linda Scott, administrative director of the center, said Friday. She had a full-house Friday. The center can accommodate about 100 people.

They serve those who are homeless and those who just want to get warm or want to come and take a break.

“It is a basic warming center,” she said. The center is open 23 hours a day, seven days a week. It closes each day from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. for staff to clean.

The previous night, Scott said, the community provided a spaghetti and meatball dinner.

There are no beds, but there are places to sit and televisions to watch.

Coffee, hot chocolate and some food are available. The center is always interested in donations. “The community support is the reason we are so successful,” Scott said.

The National Weather Service offices in Gray and Caribou report an “arctic front” is to arrive Friday night “bringing a dramatic cooldown and much colder conditions for the weekend with highs near or below freezing and strong winds leading to significant wind chill.”

Saturday and Sunday will be “bitterly cold, with temperatures well below normal and wind chills often near or below zero. NWS is monitoring a system that could bring cold and dry plowable snow to sections of the state late Sunday into Monday,” according to the Maine Emergency Management Agency.

In Auburn, “The weather (Saturday) will meet our Level 1 activation in accordance with our policy,” City Manager Phil Crowell said.

“We will be opening the Auburn Community Senior Center from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.,” Crowell wrote in an email. The center is at 48 Pettengill Park Road in Auburn.

Crowell noted that officials of the Auburn Public Library at 49 Spring St. confirmed the facility is a warming option for those in need 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday.

“On Sunday, we have a public skate at Norway Savings Bank Arena so we will encourage people to go there for the heated mezzanine and an indoor skating option for kiddos,” Crowell wrote.

Lisbon police Chief Ryan McGee said Friday that the lobby of the Police Station will be open for anyone who may want to come in. The lobby is always open, he said.

People come in to charge their phones and other items, he said. He came into the office Friday to get things together for the impending weather.

If the lobby gets filled to capacity, he said, they can move the warming shelter to the Parks and Recreation Department. He also has another option, if too many people need shelter.

“We are always here for the people,” he said. The station is open 24 hours a day. It is at 300 Lisbon St. in Lisbon.

Kurt Schaub, Turner town manager, said Friday that no shelter is set up in that town at this point but if an emergency is activated by the town, a center would be at the Turner Fire & Rescue Station at 19 General Turner Hill Road. It will be announced on the town’s Facebook page or website, if activated.

In Oxford County, Deputy Emergency Management Director Cammie Sprague wrote that currently “we are not aware of any warming centers opening. It will be up to the individual communities to determine if they need to open one. We will make sure any openings are sent to the state so they can be posted on their website and 211, as well as on our Facebook page.”

In Franklin County, emergency shelters are opened based on the needs to the community, Amanda Simoneau, county emergency management director, wrote in an email.

If over the weekend citizens are in need and cannot find a place to go, “we encourage them to call 211 to see where the nearest shelters are located. If the information comes through dispatch, then we reach out to the pre-determined facility to see if they are able and willing to open their facility,” Simoneau wrote. As of Friday, no shelters were to open this weekend in Franklin County.

The Maine Emergency Management Agency is offering tips on preparedeness for the impending cold weather at www.maine.gov/mema/home.

To find warming centers around the state go to the agency’s site at www.maine.gov/mema/response-recovery/mass-care. People may also dial 211 (or 866-811-5695) or text their ZIP code to 898-211 for a list of locations. Or they can contact a town office, fire, or police department for local warming center information, according to Kelsey Preecs of the Maine Emergency Management Agency.

Shelters in the area include:

Hope Haven Gospel Mission, 209 Lincoln St. in Lewiston: A traditional overnight shelter serving adults and families experiencing homelessness. There are certain times for check-in. To find out more call 207-783-6086.

New Beginnings, Marian’s Place, 491 Main St. in Lewiston: A 24-hour youth emergency shelter for runaway and homeless youth ages roughly 12-19, operated by New Beginnings. It is open 8 p.m. to 8 a.m. but may extend hours because of the the impending storm. For more information call 207-795-4070.

Trinity Jubilee Center at 247 Bates St. in Lewiston is a food pantry and day shelter. It will be open Monday and Tuesday. The website is trinityjubileecenter.org.