Snow, some of it moderate, broke out early across southern Maine, leaving 6 inches in Portland by 11 a.m. on Friday. This is more than expected so early, and is due to the cold air rushing over Casco Bay.

The main part of the storm hasn’t even arrived yet to our south. Notice on the radar, the area of green is very localized.  However, what this early snow will do is help us reach those big total snowfall numbers that I am predicting.  This same situation happened in 1979 when Portland broke the 2-foot mark for snowfall.  It may be we are headed there again, 34 years later.

A blizzard warning is in effect for much of southern Maine. This means that winds in excess of 35 mph and low visibility of 1/4 mile or less from heavy snow will occur for three or more hours during this storm.  While Mainers are certainly accustomed to big snowstorms, this will be one of the bigger storms. Winds are going to be an issue and I expect some power outages that could become widespread. You might use today to make some food that you can eat cold, such as chicken.  At least if the power goes out, you can store your food in the snow.

 A wobble closer to or farther from the coast could ultimately change accumulations by a bit, but it’s  going to be an intense storm no matter how you slice it. 

Although snow will break out across the area this morning, I don’t expect roads to become impacted until later this afternoon and into the evening.  Overnight some roads may become impassable for several hours.  There will be bands of snow that rotate around the storm that are very intense.  These bands can produce snowfall of 9 inches in three hours. The bands are very narrow and that’s why I have such a wide range of snowfall totals along the coast.  Those towns that get these bands will be closer to the 2-foot mark when this is all over.  You could even hear the rumble of thunder in one of those bands.

Coastal communities are going to have to watch carefully the high tide this evening around 10 p.m. and tomorrow morning around 10 a.m. The tide Saturday morning is more than a foot higher than Friday night’s but the winds should be blowing more northerly so coastal flooding shouldn’t be a major problem. The exact position of the storm will determine the extent of any coastal damage Friday night.

Tonight, I expect roads to become virtually impassable as the snow falls at rates of 1 to 3 inches per hour. The snow will continue Saturday morning and finally come to an end during the afternoon. The snow will not be heavy and wet, so at least moving it won’t be quite as difficult as it could be.

When is it over?

The heaviest snow will be over between 9 a.m. and noon Saturday.  There will still be snow falling much of the afternoon but I am expecting only a few inches to accumulate at that time.  Sunday will be bright and sunny with temperatues in the 20s to near 30.  The second half of the weekend will be fantastic for skiing and other winter activities so enjoy the snow. 

When this is all over, some areas across southern York and Cumberland Counties will have up to 2 feet of new snow on the ground. I’ll be updating the forecast throughout the storm on Twitter at @growingwisdom and showing my latest maps.

There have been very few times over recorded weather history that Portland has received over 2 feet of snow in a single storm.  Back in January 1979 a storm of light fluffy snow ended up giving the city just over 27 inches of powder.  That particular storm isn’t very memorable to many because it didn’t do a lot of damage to the shoreline nor did it cause widespread power outages.  I do remember the storm because I didn’t have school for three days.

Thirty-five years ago, the famous Blizzard of 1978 pounded southern New England with nearly 4 feet of snow in places, but here in Maine a foot was more common.  However, that storm was memorable because of the damage it did to the Old Orchard Beach Pier.  From Feb. 24-28, 1969, it snowed for nearly 100 hours and Portland again ended up with about 27 inches of snow.  Those storms are some of our largest to ever hit southern Maine, and now we are looking at another potentially historic storm on the horizon.

I use the word historic for a storm that ends up as one of the top 10 largest on record. Friday’s storm will impact all of southern Maine, but for it to become historic every key ingredient in the atmosphere must come together in just the right way.  Snowfall rates will need to approach 3 inches per hour at least for a few hours.  If, for example, it snows at 1 inch per hour from midnight until 5 a.m., that will give us 5 inches of snow. But imagine getting 3 inches per hour during that time. Now you’re adding 15 inches to your total.  For Portland and other towns to see final amounts over 18 inches we have to have some incredibly intense snowfall rates for at least part of the storm.  

For a storm to end up in the official blizzard record books its winds must remain sustained at 35 mph or higher and coincide with the very intense snow.  Visibilities under 1/4 mile must be recorded for three hours or longer.   Sometimes, in storms like these a town such as York can experience blizzard conditions while in Sebago, 40 miles away, winds are just under the blizzard threshold. We won’t know who, if anyone, ends up in a full-fledged blizzard until the storm is under way. There have been many storms with near-blizzard conditions, but very few ever reach blizzard criteria over a wide area, this may very well be that storm. 

When the storm is over tomorrow afternoon how bad it was will be a matter of opinion. If you don’t lose power and the worst you have to do is shovel a lot of snow, you might think the storm wasn’t so bad.  If a tree falls on your car or your house the storm becomes more memorable for you and your family.  For anyone who loses an entire home, or God forbid their life, the storm is catastrophic.  

This is the hard part of forecasting and conveying what the storm will be like before it occurs. Everyone has a different opinion on what makes a bad storm.  For some, unless the entire East Coast is shut down for a week, they’ll think the storm wasn’t so bad.  For others, not being able to go shopping Saturday is a catastrophe.  I tend to fall in the middle somewhere.  The reality is that nearly everyone who reads this will come through the storm Saturday night about the same as they went into it.  Will this storm be a footnote in an otherwise tranquil winter, or a blockbuster storm that begins a snowy second half of winter, or will it indeed be historic? We can explore those questions after the storm is over.

Gardening
This week I am putting up a video on how to build the perfect container.  While you might not be thinking of gardening this week, you can plant pansies in 8 weeks and if you have protective covering some vegetables can be planted in another 5 weeks.  More on how I do that in upcoming blogs.  

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this blog or any others. Please follow me on Twitter at @growingwisdom and check out my latest videos at GrowingWisdom.com

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