Portland City Hall and municipal buildings will open later than usual, the Legislature canceled all hearings and meetings, and Central Maine Power Co. issued a weather warning to customers as the state braced for a potentially dangerous winter storm that was expected to drop a mix of snow, rain, sleet and freezing rain over most of Maine early Tuesday.

Margaret Curtis, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Gray, said Portland could get up to three inches of wet snow before it changes to sleet and freezing rain early Tuesday morning.

“It would be a good day to stay home if you don’t have to be on the roads,” Curtis said. “Overall, it is going to be a mess.”

 

The nor’easter prompted Portland officials to announce Monday that City Hall and other municipal buildings would not open until 9 a.m.

State government announced late Monday afternoon that all of Tuesday’s legislative work sessions, public hearings and meetings have been canceled and all legislative offices will be closed.

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CMP issued a statement late Monday afternoon advising its customers of potential power outages from what it characterized as a “major winter storm.” The company said it was concerned because gusty winds “could put tree limbs into contact with power lines and may create dangerous travel conditions that could lead to car-pole crashes.”

“Every hour of every day, we are prepared to respond to power interruptions, but in a case like this, all employees throughout the company are on heightened alert,” Sara Burns, CMP’s president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

The weather service said winds will be powerful along the coast, with gusts up to 40 mph. Over the ocean, wind speeds could reach 60 mph, creating waves up to 20 feet high along the coast.

Emera Maine, which provides electrical service to northern and eastern parts of the state, also issued a statement saying the company is ready to respond to outages.

“If forecast models hold true, most of the winds are expected from the north, and that is a good thing,” said Brad Flannery, manager of line and meter operations. “The fact that most trees have lost their leaves and the ground is frozen is also helpful, but the ice is a concern. So we’re preparing for the worst and hoping for the best.”

Portland did not have a parking ban Monday night, but Biddeford, Saco, Sanford and Lisbon all announced parking bans.

Dennis Hoey can be contacted at 791-6365 or at:

dhoey@pressherald.com


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