High winds hamper travel, cleanup
The blizzard that battered Massachusetts over the weekend also had a snowy impact on the rest of New England.
Two feet of snow enveloped Rhode Island yesterday, accompanied by high winds that officials said hampered efforts to keep up with the storm.
The National Weather Service said snow totals placed the storm among the top five in the past 100 years and called its force just shy of that seen in the Blizzard of '78, which paralyzed the state and stranded thousands of travelers. There were 17.8 inches at T. F. Green Airport in Warwick at 7 a.m. yesterday.
Governor Don Carcieri declared a state of emergency and 50 Rhode Island National Guard members and the guard's engineering equipment were mobilized to clear the roads, particularly to keep the ramps open on Interstate 95. The state of emergency was the first for Rhode Island since the 1978 blizzard.
Carcieri also said all state and municipal offices would be closed today and requested that schools also close. Additionally, he said RIPTA bus service statewide would continue on a regular schedule yesterday, but would be suspended today except for the RIDE service for the disabled.
"Right now, the cleanup is what's worrying us," he said. "That's going to take, we think, throughout the night and we think a good part of [today]."
In Providence, Mayor David Cicilline said schools would be closed today. Seventy-five plows and sanders were at work on the city's streets yesterday and front-end loaders were being used to remove snow from the downtown and deposit it at a dump site.
More than a foot of snow fell yesterday across portions of coastal and southern Maine as frigid temperatures and whipping winds created dangerous conditions.
The National Weather Service issued a blizzard warning that was scheduled to last into last night across southern, central, and eastern Maine.
With the snow still falling yesterday, snowfall totals reached 18 inches in Scarborough, 16.5 inches in Saco, 15 inches in South Berwick, 12 inches in Hollis, and 11.5 inches inches in Portland, according to the National Weather Service. Westbrook reported 11 inches and Sanford had 9.5 inches.
Winds were gusting at 35 to 40 miles per hour, especially along coastal areas, causing drifting snow and poor visibility. A gust of 72 miles per hour was reported in Cape Elizabeth during the overnight hours.
In New Hampshire, snow and whipping winds reduced visibility and caused minor power outages.
The National Weather Service said drifting and blowing snow would make travel difficult and posted a blizzard warning on the coast until evening.
Snowfall totals were difficult to gauge because of the wind, but most of southern New Hampshire got at least a foot and some areas got two feet. Central towns typically got 6 to 12 inches, with less farther north. Numerous church services, concerts, and other events were canceled. The weather forced numerous delays at the Manchester Airport, and
Vermont received only a glancing blow, with roughly 2 feet of snow in southeastern sections of the state.
West Wardsboro reported 20 inches, while Peru and Springfield reported 14 inches. Norwich and Ludlow reported 11 inches while Woodstock reported 10, Salisbury reported 7 inches and Bethel and Rutland reported 6 inches.
The big story yesterday, however, was not the snow: It was the wind. The National Weather Service in Burlington reported winds gusting to 31 miles per hour in Burlington and 26 miles per hour in Newport. With the temperature only around zero, the wind chill was below minus 20.
