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Snow, Ice Cause Slippery Conditions in Maine

At least one serious crash involving a Massachusetts man was reported on the Maine Turnpike, according to state police

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Wintry weather caused many schools and state offices in Maine to close Friday due to snow, ice and slush.

Speed limits were reduced on the Maine Turnpike and several crashes were reported, according to state police.

A Quincy, Massachusetts, man was seriously injured on the turnpike just before 1 p.m. when, state police said, his car skidded into the path of a delivery truck. The driver was taken to Maine Medical Center for head injuries.

The truck driver was not hurt in the crash.

Despite slippery conditions on some roads, some drivers said they didn't have any issues.

"The roads were actually fine," said Deb Holmes of South Gardiner, who was waiting at Portland International Jetport for her husband to return on a delayed flight from a trip to Utah. "I went 45 mph the way down and the roads are absolutely fine. They're heavily salted."

The inclement weather did impact flights in and out of the Jetport.

"Last night, the majority of our air carriers decided not to bring their flights in," assistant airport director Zachary Sundquist said. "That allowed us to be able to treat all our runways, taxiways and all of our terminal aprons with chemicals and snow removal equipment so that this morning we have bare pavement and are ready to take on today’s flights."

Despite that effort, delays and cancellations trickled in throughout the day, mostly, according to Sundquist, due to trouble in other parts of the country.

"A lot of that is planes laid up in other cities, getting into hubs in New York, Philadelphia or Washington," he said.

Icy conditions were expected to persist through the evening.

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