Maine News Updates

At 9 a.m., it was 27 degrees in downtown Portland, where it has stopped snowing. Another day where the weather is the news. The storm has moved past Portland and parts south, but is still hammering the rest of Maine. It left behind a mess of troubles which will probably get worse as the day progresses. Let's go through them one at a time, shall we?

• FORECAST: The snow has stopped falling in Portland and surrounding areas, but a wicked wind, the one that is pushing this whopper out of our state, will create dangerous blowing and drifting snow.

The wind, at times, will gust 40 mph or more which will also prove problematic for trees and power lines already weighted down with this wet snow. The state police 911 center has been besieged by calls about power lines down, power outages and branches snapping off trees.

Here it is via the radar:

The darkest blue is snow that is coming down at up to 3 inches per hour.

• ROAD CONDITIONS: Because of the downed lines and tree parts, it is safe to say that some roads will end up closed today. The Maine Turnpike at 4:30 a.m. was treacherous, with the drifting snow making it impossible for snowplow crews to keep up. The speed is reduced to 45 mph and it's not a bad idea to adhere to it. I-295 meanwhile, is at 40 mph.

• POWER OUTAGES: At 5:30 a.m., Central Maine Power was reporting 84,000 outages in all, with Brunswick, Bridgton and Alfred being hit the hardest.

Alfred: 16,100 outages reported

Bridgton: 10,200 outages reported

Brunswick: 22,900 outages reported.

Lewiston: 12,100 outages reported.

Portland: 8,700 outages reported.

• SCHOOL CLOSINGS: Looks like most students will get another day added to their vacation thanks to the storm. With 180 delays or cancellations being reported this morning, it's a safe bet the kids can sleep in one more day. You can click this link to visit our storm closings page.

THE SUNRISE HERALD WEATHER WATCHERS REPORT:

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TRAVELIN' DOWN THAT ROAD:

• SPEEDS ARE REDUCED ON THE MAINE TURNPIKE and on I-295 due to the weather. (See above for more) The map at right is from the Maine Department of Transportation. The purple line shows roads that are difficult to travel this morning. The map is a clickable link, and will connect you with the website and a bigger map.

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ON THE OCEAN:

A gale warning is in effect. Bitterly cold northwest winds blowing 20 to 30 knots with gusts up to 45 knots. Seas 3 to 5 feet. Visibility restricted due to snow. High tide is at 9:58 a.m. and again at 10:27 p.m. Low tide was at 3:45 a.m. and will be again at 4:17 p.m.

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IN THE NEWS:

DEER ISLE -- Two men were hospitalized, one with serious injuries, after an early morning stabbing incident Sunday in Deer Isle. Maine State Police detectives were still investigating the details late Sunday afternoon, but it appears as though Jeffrey Jones, 42, and Carlos Garcia, 21, got into a fight and ended up stabbing each other.

The Bangor Daily News has a full story about the incident, which can be accessed by clicking here.

Neither man was fatally injured. Jones' injuries were more severe. He was flown by helicopter from Blue Hill to Eastern Maine Medical Center in Bangor where he was listed in stable condition late Sunday. Garcia, meanwhile, was treated at Blue Hill Memorial Hospital and released.

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Turns out there is a green-tinged comet now buzzing by Earth, and the best chance to see it is tonight.

Comet Lulin, as it is known, was first discovered by a Chinese teenager just over a year ago. And it is making its possibly first and last flyby of Earth this month, traveling from the farthest edges of the solar system about 18 trillion miles away.

Stargazers with binoculars or a telescope could get a pretty good glimpse of the frozen ball of ice and dust hurtling across the night sky, although to the naked eye, Lulin won't be much more impressive than that of a dim, fuzzy star (as seen in the photo at right, taken by the Associated Press last night in Texas).

To see it with the naked eye, you will need a dark night. And a clear sky. (Unfortunately, the cloudy skies forecast in Maine may not be conducive to star-gazing). But if tonight doesn't work out, there is always tomorrow. Lulin won't fade out of view until mid-March when it moves to the dark depths of the outer solar system.

The comet will be as close to Earth as it will ever get around midnight tonight. And it will still be be 38 million miles away To check out the comet, first find Saturn and then look south, or slightly southwest.

The Associated Press provided the information for this report.

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