CMP Prepared for Early Season Nor’easter
CMP employees participating in company's annual winter storm preparedness exercises last week
CMP teams are prepared for a nor'easter forecasted to bring rain and gusty winds to Maine starting Friday.
Augusta, ME – September 25, 2026 – Central Maine Power (CMP), a subsidiary of Avangrid Inc., is prepared for a nor’easter forecasted to bring rain and gusty winds to Maine beginning on Friday.
CMP has been tracking this weather system over the course of the week. Additional crews will be staffed at a number of service centers across CMP’s service area. They will respond as quickly and safely as possible to any outages that occur. There has been some variability in the track and intensity of this storm as updated forecasts have come in over the past several days and CMP has taken this into account in its planning. For safety, CMP crews cannot raise bucket truck arms when winds exceed 30 mph.
"Our teams have been closely monitoring the forecast, preparing for this storm, and we are ready to respond as safely and quickly as possible to any outages that occur," said Linda Ball, President and CEO of Central Maine Power. "Underscoring the early timing of this nor’easter, just last week, our teams concluded our annual comprehensive, multi-day exercises focused on storm preparedness and our response plan for this year’s winter storm season. We encourage customers to make their own preparations now by reviewing their emergency plans, charging devices and gathering anything they feel they made need ahead of the storm today. Taking steps before severe weather hits can make a big difference if your community is affected.”
Storm conditions may continue through the weekend into early next week and bring 30-40 mph wind gusts. With leaves still on trees, the risk of tree damage can increase. Tree strength can also be compromised by drought conditions, which many communities are experiencing.
In every storm, CMP assists local emergency management agencies to clear roads blocked by downed trees. Falling trees are the leading cause of outages at CMP and road clearing can be completed even when it is too windy for crews to work in the air in buckets.
For every storm, CMP follows a structured process to assess damage, deploy resources and restore power as safely and efficiently as possible. Learn more about how CMP restores power after major storms in this short video.
For any customers looking for additional information on how to prepare for a possible power outage, CMP’s Storm Safety Checklist can be a helpful resource.
Please stay away from any downed power lines if you come across them during this storm. Remember, no line is safe to touch ever.