WESTBROOK, Maine — Thursday's snowstorm brought heavy, wet snow and strong winds that snapped trees and branches onto power lines, knocking out power for thousands of customers in the city of Westbrook.
City arborist, Doug Eaton told NEWS CENTER Maine he had already cut up several fallen trees by 10 a.m. Thursday and some blocked entire roads and took down electricity lines.
Eaton said Methodist Road, which connects downtown Westbrook to Route 302, had multiple locations where trees were bending into the lane.
Eaton found trees down on Duck Pond Road, Prospect Street, Cumberland Street, James Henry Lane, and Sterling Drive as well.
At 2 p.m., Central Maine Power reported that 3,917 of the 10,494 customers in Westbrook alone did not have power. Statewide, CMP reported a peak of more than 320,000 customers without electricity around 1:30 p.m., which is nearly half the company's customer base.
The damage comes 10 days after Maine got hit with an ice storm that had similar outcomes: tree branches snapping under ice and snow falling on tree branches. During that storm, more than 200,000 CMP customers lost power.
Governor Janet Mills closed all state offices on Thursday due to the storm, and most schools in the state canceled classes. Westbrook City Hall, Walker Memorial Library, and the Westbrook Community Center all closed on Thursday due to severe weather conditions.
City public works crews used construction vehicles equipped with plows to supplement the work of the normal plow dump trucks that carry salt mixtures in the bed.
For a list of warming stations, click here.
