Winter storm wallops Maine Downed wires spark phone pole, tree fires

An intense storm expected to leave as much as 8 to 12 inches of snow in parts of Maine pushed its way up the coast Sunday, turning from rain to heavy flakes in the afternoon and leaving highways treacherous, downed wires sparking and at least 85,000 power customers in the dark.

As the storm raged in the afternoon, visibility was reduced to near zero and plows were sometimes overwhelmed by accumulations of 1 to 3 inches per hour. Forecasters predicted strong winds as the storm wound down, and by nightfall, the wet, heavy snow was causing tree limbs and branches to sag onto power lines and roads. Dozens of telephone pole and tree fires were reported.

Scores of weather-related car and truck accidents kept dispatch, police and fire personnel running for much of the day.

The accidents included at least one rollover in Hancock County. Authorities were investigating a car-snowmobile accident in the Jackson-Thorndike area of Waldo County late Sunday night.

The storm left thousands of Mainers temporarily without power.

By Sunday night, an estimated 50,000 Central Maine Power customers had lost power, and that total was expected to increase, according to spokesman Kevin Elwell.

The problem was worst in the midcoast region, with more than 20,000 customers without electrical service in CMP’s Brunswick service area and another 15,000 in its Rockland-Belfast area as of 9 p.m. Repair crews were expected to work through the night to restore electricity to those who lost it.

Outages also were reported in Bangor Hydro-Electric Co.’s service area, where an estimated 35,000 customers lost power, according to Carroll Lee, the utility’s president and chief operating officer.

“We’re using all of our resources to restore power to our customers,” Lee said Sunday night. Repair crews from Bangor Hydro also were expected to work through the night.

Maine Public Service Co., which serves the northernmost part of the state, reported no outage problems Sunday.

The National Weather Service had posted a winter storm warning across Maine, predicting the heaviest snowfall in a band that includes Calais, Houlton, Millinocket and Greenville. Total accumulations in that area were expected to range from a foot to 18 inches.

In Bangor, Newport and Bucksport, up to 6 inches were expected by nightfall, with total accumulations ranging from 8 to 12 inches, while the snow-hungry ski areas in the state’s western mountains were expected to get from 6 inches to a foot.

Farther south in the state, the weather service said, 3 to 8 inches were expected.

The storm resulted in the cancellation of several events around the state, ranging from church and library events to a Bangor Symphony Orchestra concert and bingo in several communities.

But Bangor International Airport remained open.

At the state police barracks in Gray, a dispatcher said the speed limit had been dropped to 45 mph on the Maine Turnpike, where accident reports had been phoned in steadily since the morning. The speed limit for Interstate 95 also was lowered, according to a dispatcher from the Orono barracks, who reported dozens of small accidents but no injuries.

Snow and fallen trees made some roads temporarily impassable during the height of the storm. Route 9 was closed for several hours after a pair of accidents in Amherst, according to staff from the Department of Transportation office on Hogan Road in Bangor.

Route 2 in Carmel was also closed temporarily after power lines fell, according to Charles Erickson, dispatch supervisor at the Penobscot Regional Communications Center. At one point, things got so busy at the center that eight people, including some dispatchers who stayed on after their day shifts ended, were needed to keep up with the calls.

In Gouldsboro, a Bangor couple escaped serious injury after their vehicle rolled over on Route 1. The accident occurred after Edwin Martin lost control of his vehicle early Sunday afternoon. Neither Martin nor his wife, Shannon, was injured, according to police in that area.

In northern Penobscot County, emergency personnel spent the day tending to dozens of minor accidents. In terms of snow, the Millinocket and Lincoln areas had an accumulation of more than 6 inches by 6:30 p.m. Dispatchers also reported power outages throughout Lincoln and a brief outage in Millinocket

“We’ve been lucky so far, said Peter Larlee, East Millinocket dispatcher. “It’s going to be a long night.”

The storm was expected to wind down as a low-pressure system moved up into the Bay of Fundy and winds backed into the northwest.