UPDATED: New London Schools, City Offices Closed On Friday

7:54 p.m. update

The New London Police Department has just announced that winter parking restrictions will go into effect at midnight.

6:54 p.m. update

Additional closings:

• Cross Sound Ferry has canceled the 10 a.m., 2 p.m., and 6 p.m. departures from New London as well as the noon, 4 p.m., and 7:45 p.m. departures from Orient Point on Friday and Saturday
• The Drop-In Learning Center will be closed on Friday

5:22 update

New London Public Schools will be closed on Friday.

4:52 update

Mayor Daryl Finizio has announced that the city will be taking a number of steps to prepare for the anticipated blizzard over the weekend, including the closing of New London municipal offices on Friday.

Only city employees who are necessary to aid in storm response will report to work. Finizio said he has also ordered a partial activation of the city's Emergency Operations Center at the Department of Public Works. Finizio said he has requested a liaison from Connecticut Light & Power to be at the EOC and that CL&P trucks have been stationed in the city to respond to power outages. A full activation of the EOC and declaration of a state of emergency may occur if storm conditions worsen.

The National Weather Service has issued a blizzard warning for New London County from 6 a.m. on Friday to 1 p.m. on Saturday. The latest forecast calls for snowfall accumulations of 18 to 24 inches and winds of 25 to 35 miles per hour, gusting up to 55 miles per hour.

Updates on city actions during the storm will be posted on New London's municipal website and the Office of Mayor Finizio Facebook page. The EOC number will be activated at 9 a.m. on Friday and may be reached at 860-440-6642.

An announcement regarding a parking ban will be made later this evening. No decision has yet been made on school closings, and Finizio said Superintendent Nicholas Fischer will make that announcement this evening.

Trash and recycling pickup scheduled for Friday has been suspended until next week.

Other closures and cancellations include:

• The Public Library of New London will be closed on Friday; patrons may call the library to check on weekend hours
• Mitchell College will be closed Friday and Saturday
• Amtrak is limiting Friday service, with Acela southbound service suspended after the 1:15 p.m. departure from Boston and northbound service suspended after the 1:03 p.m. departure from New York; Northeast Regional service will be suspended after the 1:40 p.m. departure from Boston and 12:30 p.m. departure from New York. Determinations on Saturday service will be made on Friday
• Cross Sound Ferry is canceling Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun connections on Friday and Saturday
• The Lyman Allyn Art Museum will be closed on Friday
• The Custom House Maritime Museum has canceled all Friday through Sunday activies, including the Deborah O'Connor silhouettes and Marcus Rediker talk on the Amistad; both events will be rescheduled
• The Monte Cristo Bookshop has canceled its Susan Epstein and Bernice Rocque events; the Epstein event has been moved to March 23, while a new date on the Rocque event will be determined
• New London Youth Affairs has canceled its Friday playgroup
• The Eastern Connecticut Symphony Chorus has canceled its Friday rehearsal
• Connecticut College has canceled an athletic hall of fame induction ceremony scheduled for Saturday

Original story:

The National Weather Service has issued a blizzard watch for the southern New England region, with hazardous wintry weather expected on Friday and Saturday.

The blizzard watch - which was also issued for southern New London, New Haven and Middlesex counties - will be in effect from Friday afternoon through Saturday afternoon. The forecast calls for heavy snow and sleet, with snow accumulation of 18 to 24 inches with some ice.

The forecast also calls for strong winds peaking from Friday night into Saturday morning. Wind speed is estimated to reach 30 to 35 miles per hour with gusts of up to 60 miles per hour.

The National Weather Service says there is a 50 percent chance that snowfall with less than an inch of accumulation will begin after midnight. On Friday, morning snow will transition into afternoon rain, with snow returning after 9 p.m. and continuing into Saturday. The forecast calls for the storm to have passed by Saturday evening.

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