A driver for Baldor Specialty Foods makes deliveries on Fore Street during the storm Monday. Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald

A spring storm blanketed much of Maine on Monday, dropping up to half a foot of snow in interior areas and leaving slick driving conditions, a slew of accidents and early closures it its wake throughout the state.

A weak weather system moved into Maine late Monday morning, bringing rain and wet snow to the central, southwest and western parts of the state.

The southern coast saw relatively little snowfall. Portland recorded 1.6 inches, while Saco saw just over half an inch, according to the National Weather Service office in Gray. A rain began to wash over Portland around sunset.

Michael Ekster, a forecaster at the weather service’s Gray office, said the snow in Portland would likely melt by Tuesday morning.

“It might take another day or two further north, where we had 5 or 6 inches of snow,” Ekster said on a phone call Monday night.

The snow fell heaviest over the state’s north and mountain regions, with Minot in Androscoggin County charting 5.9 inches — the highest accumulation reported.

Auburn saw 5.5 inches, as did New Gloucester, while Otisfield trailed just behind with 5.4 inches.

At this time of year, the sun is more directly overhead than it is in the winter, Ekster said. That means sunlight beams more directly onto snowbanks, speeding up the melt.

Clumps of wet snow fell through afternoon and continued into the evening commute for some, creating slushy roads and poor visibility.

A car sits in the median facing south in the northbound lane of the Maine Turnpike in Saco on Monday afternoon. The wintry mix caused numerous accidents on Monday. Gregory Rec/Portland Press Herald

Fire and police departments across the state reported high volumes of accidents on the wet roads.

“Did you really think we were done with winter driving?” the Westbrook Police Department said in a post on social media. “After being lulled into a false sense of security the past couple of weeks, we have some slippery roads out there today.”

The Scarborough Fire Department said it had responded to “numerous motor vehicle accidents during this last hour” in a post on social media around 3 p.m. Brunswick police said there were also several crashes on Old Portland Road between Brunswick and Freeport. Another crash temporarily closed part of New County Road in Dayton.

The speed limit on the Maine Turnpike was reduced to 45 mph from the New Hampshire state line to mile 109 in Augusta.

Gov. Janet Mills announced state offices would close at 2 p.m. because of the hazardous travel conditions expected throughout the afternoon. Several offices, including courthouses, had already closed before Mills’ order.

“Spring may have arrived, but winter weather isn’t done with us yet,” she said in a statement. “I urge all Maine people to use caution on the roads this afternoon. Please give extra space to plow trucks and emergency responders working to keep our roads clear and our communities safe.”

Pedestrians walk through Tommy’s Park in Portland on Monday. Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald

Central Maine Power Co. reported a little over 1,000 outages at 5 p.m., with more than 600 clustered in Cumberland County. The statewide number had dropped to fewer than two dozen by 7 p.m.

A small craft advisory was issued for coastal waters from Stonington to the Merrimack River in Massachusetts. Forecasters warned that southwest winds of 10 to 20 knots and seas of 4 to 7 feet will create conditions that could be hazardous for small boats. That advisory remains in effect until 4 p.m. Tuesday.

The forecast prompted early closures in some school districts, including Gorham, Richmond, Wiscasset and Winthrop. The University of Southern Maine, Southern Maine Community College and University of Maine at Augusta closed at noon. Farmington District Court also closed at noon.

The low-pressure system will exit the area Monday night, but another system will pass nearby offshore late Wednesday, bringing another chance of snow and rain. The weather service says conditions will remain unsettled and relatively cool into next weekend.

Ekster, the meteorologist, said there are a couple of cold fronts expected during the week, but “not really anything to write home about.”

“We’ve been keeping an eye on this weekend into early next week,” he said. “There’s another similar low-pressure system, but perhaps a little warmer. So that’s the one we’re really keeping an eye on next.”