Heaviest Snow Moving into North Branford Now: UPDATE

UPDATED: 5:10 p.m.

The National Weather Service has just issued a “Special Weather Statement” for all of Fairfield, New Haven, Middlesex, and New London counties.

The Blizzard Warning remains in effect for southern Fairfield, New Haven, Middlesex, and New London counties for between 1-2 feet of snow. The two feet areas will be west of Bridgeport, the National Weather Service writes.

Northern Fairfield, New Haven, Middlesex, and New London counties continue to operate under a Winter Storm Warning for between 10-14 inches of snow.

Here is the latest Special Weather Statement issued by the National Weather Service late Saturday afternoon:

Heavy snow is moving into southern Connecticut now and snowfall rates of 1-2 inches per hour are expected.

Some snowfall rates of up to 3 inches per hour are possible in isolated incidents.

The heaviest snow for southern Connecticut is expected between 5-7 p.m. with blizzard conditions continuing at the immediate coast, and near blizzard conditions a bit inland.

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UPDATED: 12:40 p.m.

The ever changing forecast is, of course, changing again.

Yes, a Blizzard Warning is still in effect until 7 a.m. Sunday but the projected snow totals are exploding.

In a late morning update, the National Weather Service says communities on the immediate coastline, including southern Fairfield, southern New Haven, southern Middlesex and southern New London counties, will all see a minimum of 12 inches of snow.

The jackpot goes to communities west of Bridgeport which will now see 18-24 inches of snow, and for the rest of us, our consolation prize is 12-18 inches of snow.

See related story: Blizzard 2016: Snowfall Totals in Connecticut (So Far)

Here are some other key notes from the NWS:

* HAZARD TYPES...WIDESPREAD BLIZZARD CONDITIONS...WITH HEAVY SNOW AND POTENTIALLY DAMAGING WINDS CAUSING CONSIDERABLE BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW AND NEAR ZERO VISIBILITIES.

* ACCUMULATIONS...SNOW ACCUMULATION OF 18 TO 24 INCHES WEST OF BRIDGEPORT...AND 12 TO 18 INCHES EAST.

* WINDS...NORTH 20 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH.
* VISIBILITIES...ONE QUARTER MILE OR LESS AT TIMES.

* TEMPERATURES...IN THE MID 20S.

* TIMING...THROUGH TONIGHT.

* IMPACTS...EXTREMELY DANGEROUS TRAVEL DUE TO HEAVY SNOWFALL AND STRONG WINDS WITH WHITEOUT CONDITIONS LIKELY. SECONDARY AND TERTIARY ROADS MAY BECOME IMPASSABLE. STRONG WINDS MAY DOWN POWER LINES AND TREE LIMBS.

‘Near Blizzard Conditions’ in CT : 5 Things to Know

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Updated: 12:30 a.m.

The National Weather Service has issued a “Blizzard Warning” for the Connecticut coastline, which includes southern portions of Fairfield, New Haven, Middlesex and New London counties.

A Winter Storm Warning was issued at 4 p.m. Friday but was upgraded late Friday as the storm track shifted and we’re expected to receive significantly more snow now.

Here are the need to know details:

...BLIZZARD WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 2 AM SATURDAY TO 7 AM EST SUNDAY....

* HAZARD TYPES...HEAVY SNOW ALONG WITH STRONG AND POTENTIALLY DAMAGING WINDS. BLOWING AND DRIFTING SNOW WITH NEAR ZERO VISIBILITIES IS EXPECTED SATURDAY AND SATURDAY EVENING.

* ACCUMULATIONS...SNOW ACCUMULATION OF 10 TO 15 INCHES. LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS POSSIBLE.

* WINDS...NORTHEAST 20 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH.

* VISIBILITIES...NEAR ZERO AT TIMES.

* TEMPERATURES...20S.

* TIMING...LATE TONIGHT THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT.

* IMPACTS...EXTREMELY DANGEROUS TRAVEL DUE TO HEAVY SNOWFALL AND STRONG WINDS WITH WHITEOUT CONDITIONS LIKELY. SECONDARY AND TERTIARY ROADS MAY BECOME IMPASSABLE. STRONG WINDS MAY DOWN POWER LINES AND TREE LIMBS.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A BLIZZARD WARNING MEANS SEVERE WINTER WEATHER CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED. FALLING AND BLOWING SNOW WITH STRONG WINDS AND POOR VISIBILITIES ARE LIKELY. THIS WILL LEAD TO WHITEOUT CONDITIONS...MAKING TRAVEL EXTREMELY DANGEROUS. DO NOT TRAVEL. IF YOU MUST TRAVEL...HAVE A WINTER SURVIVAL KIT WITH YOU. IF YOU GET STRANDED...STAY WITH YOUR VEHICLE.

Original story:

update this guide in real time as we receive news and information.

Residents are strongly encouraged to clear the fire hydrants near their homes if they are covered by snow during a storm in case of an emergency.

Important Links:

• UPDATE: Winter Storm Warning Now Issued for North Branford
• North Branford’s Hour-By-Hour Nor’Easter Snowstorm Forecast
• ‘Near Blizzard Conditions’ in CT : 5 Things to Know

• North Branford Patch: News Alerts, Facebook

Important Phone Numbers

• Emergency: 911
• For non-emergency police situations: 203-484-2703.

Report Outages and Gas Emergencies

Always assume downed power lines are live and dangerous, and be mindful of natural gas odors. If you see a downed power line or trees touching power lines, or if you need to report an electrical power outage, or if you smell natural gas, call your utility toll-free with the location and any specifics. Keep these numbers handy and programmed into your mobile phone.

• Connecticut Natural Gas: at 866-924-5325
• The United Illuminating Company: 800-722-5584 (800-CALL-UI). Sign Up for United Illuminating’’s Outage Alerts. We will let you know when we are aware of your power outage, provide an estimated restoration time (when available) and send you confirmation when your service has been restored. Text “REG” to 839-884 to get outage alerts sent to your mobile phone by text message. Or, sign up for your choice of text, phone or e-mail alerts by visiting uinet.com. Visit the Storm Center on uinet.com to keep track of current outages on our Outage Map and Town Outage List. You can also learn about our process for restoring power on the Restoration Priorities page, get safety information and more.
• Eversource: To report a power outage, call Eversource at 1-800-286-2000 or use the “Report an Outage” link at www.eversource.com.

Staying Safe

Safety is always the top priority. Customers should stay at least 10 feet away from any downed power lines and immediately call 911 to report them. Any customer using a generator should make sure it has been installed properly for their own safety and the safety of line workers restoring power.

And your organization has cancelled or postponed an event because of the weather, email barbara.heins@patch.com, so we can include it in this list.