Updated: Gov Bans Non-Emergency Vehicles From Wilbur Cross, Merritt

Governor Dannel P. Malloy signed an order, effective late Saturday afternoon, banning non-emergency vehicles on the Wilbur Cross and Merritt Parkways due to dangerous driving conditions .

The Connecticut Department of Transportation said Saturday evening that service on the New Haven Rail Line branches to New Canaan, Danbury and Waterbury was suspended due to downed trees, slippery rail conditions and power issues.

“The storm is causing treacherous driving conditions down along the Merritt Parkway particularly, as well as on roadways across the state,” said Governor Malloy. “I am urging residents to stay off the roads and let DOT crews get out there and get the streets clear. On the Merritt and Wilbur Cross Parkways no one should be on the roads except emergency crews.  People should stay inside at this point, we are seeing heavy snow start to impact power as well as driving.”

In Madison, Madison 911 was reporting wires down in the vicinity of Durham Road and Old Toll Road around 3 p.m. Also, earlier in the day, there were reports of three accidents. Initial reports indicate that there were no injuries in those accidents. The accidents were reported in the vicinity of Blueberry Hill Drive, Hathaway Lane, and Country Road. It was not clear whether weather was a factor in those accidents.

Connecticut Light & Power reported more than 1,300 customers in Madison without power as of 7:50 p.m.

In Clinton, where town officials opened town hall as an emergency shelter, outages were down to about 880 around 8 p.m., after being up to more than 1,000 earlier in the evening. In Durham, more than 2,300 were without power. In Guilford, more than 2,000 were without power as of 7:50 p.m. Statewide CL&P said that about 40 percent of its customers were without power, or more than 490,000.

Amy Weber Johnson reported late Saturday afternoon via Facebook that her home, in North Madison near Rockland Preserve,  was without power. "No power here ... Brrrrr it is gettin chilly!" She said once her husband gets home, they are going to break out the generator. "No roughing it this time. Irene was enough for me. lol. Also, neighbors have power, can go there, too!"

Also on Facebook, Patch readers reported being without power on Bartlett Drive, Deepwood Drive, Hickory Lane, and Country Way. As of 5 p.m., the town's deputy emergency management director reported there are no plans to open an emergency shelter, but that he would let us know if that changed. Clinton, which has more than 1,000 without power, has opened its town hall as an emergency shelter.

Connecticut Light & Power asked customers to be sure to report their outages: "Report your power outage by calling CL&P at 800-286-2000.  Our automated phone system rapidly processes your report and helps us speed restoration efforts.  It also provides restoration estimates as soon as they’re available."

The National Weather Service on Saturday afternoon upgraded with winter weather advisory to a winter storm watch lasting until 6 a.m. Sunday.

The Emergency Operations Center, staffed by personnel from the Departments of Emergency Services and Public Protection, Transportation, Military, Public Health, Energy and Environmental Protection, as well as representatives from Connecticut Light & Power, United Illuminating and AT&T, will remain open throughout the duration of the storm.

Governor Malloy directed staff at DESPP to reach out to the utilities in advance of the storm to discuss response capabilities in the event of power outages across the state, and the utilities participated in the Governor’s 3 pm conference call today.