The first northeast of the season leaves 180,000 power cuts, dangerous roads in its wake



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“Much of the precipitation from the storms initially fell as heavy rain, but it quickly turned to snow once cold air got in behind it. Strong winds accompanied the heavy, wet snow that was fallen, “CNN meteorologist Derek Van Dam said. “This is not an ideal situation given the dangerous conditions that have been left in the wake of the storms.”

The most severe effects of the storm were felt in Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine. Shapleigh, Maine and Derry, New Hampshire saw about 8 inches of snow while Paxton, Massachusetts received 12.5 inches.

Across the tri-state, there were about 180,000 customers without power as of Sunday afternoon, including about 147,000 outages in Maine, according to poweroutage.us, a website that tracks electricity use across the country.

“This nor’easter was a significant event of snow, wind and rain, but could have been debilitating if the temperatures were just a few degrees cooler at the start of the storm,” said Van Dam.

The precipitation around Boston was ending as the first northeast of the season turned to Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, Van Dam said, bringing rain and winds with gusts of up to 50 mph.

Travel is not advised

The region is now navigating “dangerous roads and widespread blackouts”, the National Weather Service in Portland / Gray Maine said on Twitter Saturday night.

The weather service warned against travel late Saturday afternoon as blowing snow and gusts of wind could significantly reduce visibility.

The service reiterated this point later today, warning New England residents not to clutter up snowplows that move through the area “or better yet, stay completely at home.”

Power lines can also be a danger, the weather service tweeted.

“Very important reminder from @versantpower this morning. ‘Never touch a power line or tree in contact with a broken line. Motorists are urged to slow down or move and change lanes, if possible, s ‘They are approaching utility crews working on the roads,’ the tweet said.

Teams will work to remedy the damage caused by the storm, starting with downed power lines and then through restoration efforts, Versant Power tweeted.



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