Up to 18 inches snow forecast for state

A powerful and prolonged nor’easter may dump up to 18 inches of snow in parts of Connecticut, and bring heavy rain and gusty winds that could cause more than 125,000 power outages, officials said.

The storm started as rain Monday morning and afternoon before switching to snow after midnight. Snowfall rates of 1 to 2 inches per hour were possible Monday night into Tuesday morning. The heavy snow has the potential to bring down tree limbs and power lines, and could make travel difficult, the National Weather Service said.

The agency issued winter storm warnings in northern Connecticut for Litchfield, Tolland and Windham counties. Hartford County is under a winter storm watch, while winter weather advisories have been issued for northern portions of the state’s four southern counties.

Eversource, the state’s largest electrical utility, is preparing for as many as 125,000 customers to lose power.

“The last half dozen storms that have come in have tended to come with a front — you got a big vicious blast of wind within a two- to four-hour time period where probably 80 percent of our outages occurred,” said Steve Sullivan, Eversource’s president of Connecticut electric operations.

But he said this storm may be different.

“It’s calling for widespread winds across the entire state,” that could last through Wednesday, Sullivan said.

The storm is expected to impact a wide swath of the northeast from western New York and northeastern Pennsylvania to southern Maine as it rapidly develops Monday night.

In New York, Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency, asking residents to stay home and avoid unnecessary travel.

“The heavy-wet nature of the snow, combined with max wind gusts up to 50 mph, will result in scattered to widespread power outages and tree damage,” the weather service said. “Similar impacts could be felt along the I-95 corridor from New York City to Boston.”

Areas of higher elevation should see the most snow. More than a foot is expected to fall on mountain ranges in New York state, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont, while some areas could see up to 30 inches.

In Connecticut, the heaviest snow is expected in the upper part of Litchfield County, in Connecticut’s northwest corner, a hilly area that typically sees the most snow.

“This will be a long duration and high-impact snow event.” the weather service warned in a Monday morning bulletin for the area. The weather service said travel in the region “will be very difficult to impossible.”

The mix of heavy, wet snow combined with gusty winds could snap tree lines and bring down power lines, according to the National Weather Service. The greatest risk of “snow load,” where there will be 6 inches or more of heavy wet snow, is concentrated in the state’s northwest, where there’s the possibil

ity of “scattered to numerous” downed tree limbs and utility wires, the weather service said.

Eversource officials said “hundreds” of crews were called in from outside of the state and the company was “prepositioning” line and tree crews throughout Connecticut in preparation for the storm.

Closer to the shoreline, a mix of heavy rain and snow could produce flooding, with up to 2 inches of rain predicted in just 12 hours in some locations. The heavy rain could result in minor urban flooding and areas with poor drainage.

Areas along the shoreline are expected to see 1 to 3 inches of snow. Northern areas of Fairfield County could see between 6 and 8 inches of snow. The deepest snow is predicted for the northwest, with up to 18 inches expected in northern parts of Litchfield County. The northeastern

corner of the state could also see up to a foot of snow fall, the weather service said.

The Hartford area should see between 2 and 3 inches of snow, the weather service said.

Some Connecticut municipalities began announcing parking bans early on Monday. In Wallingford, parking will be banned on town streets from 7 a.m. Tuesday to 5 a.m. Wednesday.

Kafi Rouse, the state transportation department’s communication director, said the agency planned to spend much of Monday loading trucks with fuel and road salt in anticipation of the storm. She said more than 900 drivers and about 200 contractors will be on standby.

“We’ll be watching the weather closely,” Rouse said.