LEBANON — A storm that swept through Vermont and New Hampshire overnight from Sunday into Monday forced some Upper Valley offices and businesses to close, but emergency officials said advance warning of the poor weather meant people were largely well prepared.
The National Weather Service, though, has warned that lousy commuting conditions may persist, with a winter storm warning running through 1 p.m. Tuesday for parts of the Upper Valley, including Windsor and Grafton counties.
They predicted the area could get up to 13 inches of snow as well as sleet and freezing rain, which could make driving “very difficult.”
On Monday, some decided to forgo travel altogether.
Southwestern Community Services, which operates a public transit system that runs buses throughout the day in Claremont, Newport and Charlestown, announced that the service would shut down on Monday due to the weather.
“While we make every effort to remain open when there is a snowstorm forecasted, we do not want to risk the safety of passengers and drivers in dangerous conditions of sheer ice,” the group wrote in a Facebook post Sunday afternoon.
The Canaan Town Library and the South Royalton Market also closed Monday because of the weather. The Newport Senior Center — which runs the county’s Meals on Wheels program — and the Horse Meadow Senior Center in North Haverhill were also closed, as was Granite State College’s Lebanon office and River Valley Community College, which has locations in Claremont and downtown Lebanon.
Several Upper Valley communities faced power outages Monday morning that lasted into the afternoon, though most were limited to a few dozen.
Despite the hazardous conditions, the number of reported crashes and road closures was relatively minor.
“We haven’t seen as many road closures as we originally anticipated,” said Susan Klasen, an administrator with the Transportation Management Center in New Hampshire.
By Monday afternoon she said there were no closures in the Upper Valley, though the speed limit on Interstate 89 had been reduced to 45 miles per hour.
Amy Tatko, a spokesperson for the Vermont Agency of Transportation, said her office wasn’t handling any road closures or weather-related incidents in the Upper Valley Monday afternoon.
VTrans crews in Vermont patrolled the roads throughout Sunday night, treating patches of ice and snow, according to a news release from the department.
Lebanon Police Chief Richard Mello said that his department hadn’t seen an uptick in calls about traffic crashes, but that’s not surprising.
“Usually we get those calls when (the weather) takes people by surprise,” he said, adding that news about the impending storm was widely published before the snow started, giving Upper Valley residents hours to prepare.
He added that the storm struck at night, when the roads weren’t well traveled, meaning that crews had time to clear the roads before the morning commute.
Anna Merriman can be reached at amerriman@vnews.com or 603-727-3216.