A spring snowfall is hitting Maine, as unusually cold air from Canada collides with moist air from the south. The combination is creating some bands of heavy snow that are expected to spread across the state Monday, dumping up to 10 inches in some areas.The snow hit southern Maine during Monday morning's commute, sending motorists sliding on slick roads. An accident involving several vehicles, including a tractor trailer, shut down the northbound lanes of the Maine Turnpike in Saco. Traffic was backed up, and authorities were warning motorists to be prepared to stop.
The crash site was cleared just after 9:30 a.m., but officials said traffic delays were lingering.
In Cumberland County, officials said they had to shut down Portland Road in Bridgton, from Willis Park Road to the Naples line, because of several vehicle accidents there.
National Weather Service meteorologist Mal Walker says the heaviest snowfall in Maine is expected in Washington County, and in the Mount Katahdin and Moosehead Lake regions.
"An unusually cold dome of air is sinking down from Canada and that's meeting some real moist air that's pushing up from the mid-Atlantic states,” Walker says. “And the boundary is creating low pressure to develop in the Gulf of Maine later today. And that's what's setting off the snowfall across the state."
Dozens of schools are closed or delayed. So far, fewer than 400 power outages have been reported.
Updated April 8, 2019 at 11:17 a.m. ET.
