YORK COUNTY  — There were 74,835 customers without electricity in York County at 3 p.m. Monday, hours after a fierce storm blew through, uprooting trees, snapping utility poles and downing power lines. 

Systemwide, Central Maine Power Company was reporting 391,294 outages at the same time — more, said spokeswoman Gail Rice, than the ice storm of 1998.

There were outages everywhere.

Perhaps one of the hardest hit area was the rural community of Dayton, which has 918 CMP customers. As of mid-afternoon Monday, all but 17 of them were without power.

Rice said making the lines safe is the first priority, followed by power restoration.

“We are currently focusing on public safety, making downed lines safe,” said Rice in an email. “The focus is on making things safe and keeping power up for critical facilities. There may be some cases where some restoration can be accomplished as we progress with this critical safety work, but we are expecting restoration to take several days.”

York County Emergency Management Agency Deputy Director Dave Francoeur early Monday afternoon said roads in many municipalities had been re-opened as public works and other crews had managed to get tree limbs out of the way and CMP crews dealt with wires. 

In some locations, tree branches landed on roofs, causing damage. Fences twisted in the wind or simply blew over. Some homeowners reported losing pieces of their siding.

Old Orchard Beach Town Manager Larry Mead said there were some large trees down on a portion of Temple Avenue that meant closing the roadway but he said it was his understanding that that was being dealt with Monday afternoon. As of 2 p.m., there were still portions of some roads closed, he said.

“Ocean Park looks like a mess,”  said Mead. He said there was debris everywhere, and instances where trees fell on houses.

On Monday morning, York County Emergency Management Agency Director Art Cleaves said inland areas like Newfield, Limerick, Limington and Hollis got the brunt of the storm early, before it progressed toward the coast.

In Newfield, 1,207 of 1,233 customers were without power at 3 p.m., and CMP’s  York County list showed a number of communities in similar situations.

Among the other issues facing motorists Monday were traffic signals in some locations  that weren’t operating — like on routes 111 and 35 in Lyman, routes, 4, 111 and 202 in Alfred, and several locations in Sanford.

Several schools were closed Monday. Some government offices opened late, and all state offices closed at 3 p.m.

Gov. Paul LePage issued an emergency proclamation that allows drivers of electrical line repair vehicles to operate additional hours. 

“With the number of Mainers without power reaching the same as those without power during the ice storm, we need to make sure power is restored as quickly as possible,” said LePage. “I urge all Mainers to check on their neighbors and stay safe as they travel around the state.”

Hazardous weather was expected to continue throughout  Monday, with wind gusts in excess of 60 miles per hours expected along the coast and over exposed high terrain. 

Cleaves said storms like the one that blew through Sunday night into Monday reinforces the agency’s push for people to prepare ahead of time — and to be ready with a good communication plan and supplies for the next storm, as winter draws near.

As well, Maine Emergency Management Agency staff  worked with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to facilitate bringing Canadian utility crews across the Houlton border crossing. The request was approved and MEMA officials are working to facilitate the crossing, the agency said in a news release.

MEMA officials encouraged residents to ensure generators and alternate heat sources are in good working condition and properly installed. As well, they advised to never drive across or attempt to remove fallen power lines or tree limbs touching them, or to travel across flooded roadways.

 Road closure information is available at newenglend511.org.  Shelter status is available on the MEMA webpage: http://www.maine.gov/mema.

— Senior Staff Writer Tammy Wells can be contacted at 324-4444 (local call in Sanford) or 282-1535, ext. 327 or twells@journaltribune.com.