An Icy Day Across New England

New England’s first major ice storm of the season spread freezing rain across the region Sunday, downing trees and knocking out power to thousands of homes.

More than half an inch of ice had accumulated in parts of northern and western Connecticut, and more than 130,000 customers of Northeast Utilities were without power at the height of the outages there.

Several towns in the northwestern part of the state set up emergency shelters while more than 100 utility crew members worked to restore power.

About 76,000 customers remained without electricity Sunday night.

“It’s ice, it is wind, it is branches hitting lines,” said utility spokesman Mitch Gross.

“It’s going to take some time.”

Most parts of Maine had 3 to 5 inches of snow by the afternoon, and trees were sagging under the weight of ice.

An estimated 15,000 Central Maine Power Co. customers were without electricity by Sunday afternoon, said company spokesman Kevin Howes.

Dozens of cars slid off highways and speed limits were reduced to 45 mph on the Maine Turnpike and Interstate 95.

In Massachusetts, more than 10,000 outages were reported in central and southeastern parts of the state overnight after ice weighed down limbs and broke power lines.

State police reported dozens of minor accidents and at least one serious accident, in Andover, north of Boston.

Police in Colchester, Conn., were investigating whether a fatal accident Saturday night may have been related to the storm. State Police Sgt. Gregory Kenney said there had been numerous minor accidents and several roads closed by downed trees.

Connecticut Gov. John Rowland toured areas hit by the storm Sunday.

“All the affected towns have been advised that the Office of Emergency Management is ready to help if they need any assistance,” said Dean Pagani, the governor’s chief of staff.

The northeaster swept a large part of the New England states, dropping from 3 to 6 inches of snow in New Hampshire’s northern mountains and blowing cold rain across New York’s Long Island.

Wind gusted up to 35 mph on Long Island, where 7,000 homes and businesses lost power, according to the Long Island Power Authority.