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Hello, this is Todd Foisy with an important weather briefing for a potential high impact
ice event Saturday night through Sunday night. We’re going to cover a quick summary of
the event, then get into the hazard risk assessment, the situation, impacts, and timeframe.
So, first of all, it’s important to note that this is two events. Event number one
is a low impact advisory today and tonight. This is not the main event. Today and tonight’s
event will feature 4 to 6 inches of snow over the north and 1 to 3 inches of snow Downeast
with a little ice accumulation Downeast. But the bigger event is a potential high impact
event Saturday night to Sunday night, with up to three quarters inch of ice accretion
being the greatest threat. To put this in perspective, this is a rare
high impact event. We do not think it will be of the magnitude of the 1998 ice storm,
but there will be power outages somewhere around Interior Downeast, along with significant
disruption to travel. Here’s basically what’s causing the problems
Saturday night to Sunday night. Warm, moist air from the southwest will move in aloft
over the cold air that is in place over Maine, leading to an area of sleet and freezing rain.
Again, our greatest concern is the potential for up to three quarters inch ice accretion
over the area highlighted in blue here from Saturday night to Sunday night, and of course
extending further southwest into the area covered by the Portland/Gray office in southwest
Maine. Right along the coast, we are looking for up to one fourth inch of ice. North of
the blue area, however, we think it will be mostly snow, an additional 8 to 12 inches
on top of what falls today and tonight, with only a very small amount of ice. Also, load
on roofs over the southern half of the area may be a concern with a significant amount
of precipitation falling not as snow atop already heavily snow-covered roofs.
Here’s a summary of what to expect Saturday night to Sunday night. I’d also like to
add that much colder air will move in Tuesday and Wednesday with highs 5 to 15 above and
lows Wednesday morning zero to 15 below. There will be some wind behind the system, with
up to 15 to 25 mph on Tuesday. We will continue to update the briefing through the event.
Have a nice day.