It's still snowing heavily over much of Maine late this afternoon, but the national weather service says that should be ending by about midnight.
Still snowing quite hard out there in places. Keep those snow totals coming - we very much appreciate them! Here is an approximate radar simulation going forward through this afternoon as the snow winds down and ends. #nhwx #mewx pic.twitter.com/V6ZXKormTU
— NWS Gray (@NWSGray) December 3, 2019
Richard Norton is a meteorologist with the weather service in Caribou: “It’ll end in the Bangor area by about 7, clear out of the Houlton area by midnight, and shortly after that it’ll clear out of the northeast portions of the state.”
The storm seems to have caused almost no power outages in Maine so far. Roads are slick, and there is a good chance of black ice developing over the next few days as snow melts during the day and freezes again at night.
The weather service says southern coastal Maine will likely see the most snow. Kennebunk has had 15 inches, with more than 30 inches in Manchester, New Hampshire.
Schools throughout the region have canceled classes for the day.
After announcing that state offices would delay opening until 11 a.m. Tuesday, Gov. Janet Mills later decided to close them for the day.
"With the snowfall intensifying and winds growing stronger in the coming hours, driving conditions will only become more difficult and dangerous,” Mills says, in a statement issued at about 8:30 a.m. Tuesday.
Several flights have been delayed or canceled at both the Portland International Jetport and Bangor International Jetport.
The storm brought heavy snow to New Hampshire and parts of southern Maine overnight. The heaviest snow today is expected to be east of Portland, extending up through the Midcoast. Up to a foot is expected in some areas.
Updated Dec. 3, 2019 at 2:51 p.m.