PRESQUE ISLE, Maine — Residents woke up to a blast of snow and rain in Aroostook County on Wednesday as a winter storm moves through northern Maine.
Business owners, residents, and city plows in Presque Isle are working to clear the roads and sidewalks in the downtown area.
A winter storm warning is in effect until 1 p.m. with four to six inches of snow expected and wind between 35 to 40 mph, according to National Weather Service Warning Coordination Meteorologist Louise Fode.
“We are at the peak that we expect for snowfall accumulation, but it should switch over [to rain] this afternoon,” Fode said.
Icy conditions are expected on the roads as the snow melts and refreezes with temperatures being slightly above freezing during the day and below freezing at night.
Travel is strongly discouraged with near whiteout conditions, according to the National Weather Service in Caribou. Fode advises people to stay off the roads and let the Maine Department of Transportation clear the roads.
“We are not really expecting accumulations of ice on power lines, or trees,” Fode said.
There is a chance of power outages due to heavy wet snow on trees that could knock out power lines. As of 11:22 a.m. there were 77 customers without power reported by Versant for Aroostook County.
Thursday will see temperatures in the mid-30s and Friday’s temperatures will come down to 20 degrees.
