A fast-moving nor’easter packing strong winds and a load of snow is expected to barrel into Maine on Thursday morning, burying coastal areas in as much as 8 to 14 inches of snow before it ends abruptly Thursday night.

James Brown, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Gray, said snow will start falling in Portland around 8 a.m. The snow may fall at a rate of an inch per hour at times, with wind gusts of 30 mph possible, according to a weather service tweet Thursday morning.

It will continue to snow throughout the day before the storm ends around 7 p.m. Portland and coastal regions will get between 8 and 12 inches of snow.

“It is going to be a coastal storm,” Brown said.

Brown said inland areas, such as Rumford, should only get 1 to 3 inches of snow. Areas to the south of Portland, in southern York County and New Hampshire, might get up to a foot of snow.

“It’s going to be a good old-fashioned snowstorm in Maine,” said Brown, adding that he does not expect the storm will produce sleet or freezing rain.

After the storm ends, much colder air will move into Maine with bitterly cold wind chills expected on Friday. More snow will arrive Saturday, but accumulations are expected to be light.

The storm is expected to have a major impact on travel in areas to the south of Maine, including New York City, Philadelphia and Boston.

Several flights scheduled to land Thursday at the Portland International Jetport from New York, Newark and Washington, D.C., had been canceled as of Wednesday evening.

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